Source: Safran Helicopter Engines Source: Safran Helicopter Engines Close

Powering the Avicopter AC352, the engine has been jointly developed and built by Safran Helicopter Engines, Dongan and HAPRI, parts of the Aero Engine Corporation of China (AECC) consortium.

Known in China as the WZ16, it should be certified by CAAC (Civil Aviation Administration of China) in September 2019. The Ardiden 3C/WZ16 will be the first helicopter engine to be certified by both CAAC and EASA.

The Ardiden 3C/WZ16 is a new-generation turboshaft in the 1,700 to 2,000 shp power class. It features a remarkably compact modular architecture, a best-in-class power-to-weight ratio and a low cost-of-ownership. Compared to engines operating in the same power range, it offers ten per cent lower fuel consumption.

Ardiden 3C flight test campaign started in December 2016 with the AC352's maiden flight. Another variant, the Ardiden 3G, has also been selected by Russian Helicopters to power its Ka-62 which made its first flight in May 2017.

Since first ground tests of its two variants, the Ardiden 3 range maturation and certification campaign has accumulated more than 10,000 hours of trials, and will demonstrate a high level of maturity at entry-into-service.

With over 500 engines in operation, China represents a major strategic market for Safran Helicopter Engines. One of every two Chinese-registered helicopters is equipped with a Safran engine or licensed product. This level of business is the result of 40 years of cooperation with industry in China.

Source: StandardAero Source: StandardAero Close

The services will be provided at StandardAero's Maryville, Tennessee facility. StandardAero is an authorized MRO facility for some of the industry's most popular APUs, including the GTCP 36-100/-150, RE220 and APS2300.

Air Georgian Limited is a privately owned airline based at Toronto Pearson International Airport in Mississauga, ON, Canada, with hubs at Calgary International Airport and Montreal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport. Air Georgian principally operates as an Air Canada Express Partner with Air Canada, providing scheduled services on domestic and trans-border routes.

A CFM56 engine undergoes maintenance in a shop Source: MTU Aero Engines A CFM56 engine undergoes maintenance in a shop Source: MTU Aero Engines Close

The cowling is designed to contain parts of the engine after a failure, and the loss of a single blade inside the engine shouldn't have been able to cause as much damage as it did, said one former National Transportation Safety Board investigator quoted by the Wall Street Journal. Parts of the shattered engine cowling were later found scattered across the ground underneath the airliner's route by members of the public.

The Federal Aviation Administration announced late on April 18 that it will order enhanced inspections of some CFM56 engines mounted on Boeing 737s. It also plans to issue a new directive that will require ultrasound inspections of fan blades once they have been used during a certain number of cycles.

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