Rolls-Royce expands engine family for business aviation with the introduction of the Pearl

Rolls-Royce expands engine family for business aviation with the introduction of the Pearl

Pearl engine will power the new Bombardier Global 5500 and Global 6500 aircraft

Westhampnett, United Kingdom, 29-May-2018 — /EuropaWire/ — Rolls-Royce announces the launch of a new engine family for business aviation, with the introduction of the Pearl. The engine has been purpose-built and will be the sole engine for Bombardier’s latest business jets, the Global 5500 aircraft and the Global 6500 aircraft.

Rolls-Royce is the world’s leading engine supplier for business aviation, powering over 3,000 aircraft in service today, with a 42% market share. The Pearl 15 is the first of the planned state- of-the-art Pearl engine family for business aviation and marks the sixth new civil aerospace engine introduced by Rolls-Royce in the past 10 years. The introduction of this new engine family serves to reaffirm Rolls-Royce’s leading position in business aviation.

The Pearl engine combines innovative technologies derived from Rolls-Royce’s Advance2 technology demonstrator programmes with proven features from the Rolls-Royce BR700, today’s leading engine family in business aviation. Its pioneering technology, combined with outstanding performance, will support Bombardier’s successful Global family of aircraft in reaching new standards in the ultra-long-range corporate jet market.

Enabling travellers to travel farther, faster, quicker and quieter, the Pearl 15 will deliver up to 15,125lb of thrust (ISA +15), thanks to the most efficient engine core available across the business aviation sector. Despite delivering up to 9% more thrust during take-off than the BR700, the engine will be 2 decibels quieter and operators will benefit from a 7% improvement in specific fuel consumption (SFC). The engine will also deliver world-leading emissions performance, including best in class NOx emissions, despite propelling customers at speeds approaching the speed of sound (Mach 0.90).

Chris Cholerton, President – Civil Aerospace, Rolls-Royce, said: “Our teams have worked hard behind the scenes to develop this new engine and we are proud, once again, to lead the way in business aviation. The Pearl engine is a pioneering product, bringing together the most eco- friendly and efficient technologies available today.”

The new engine, which has been developed at Rolls-Royce’s Centre of Excellence for Business Aviation engines in Dahlewitz, Germany, has undergone a comprehensive test programme and received EASA certification on 28 February 2018. The engine is currently undergoing flight tests at Bombardier’s Flight Test Centre in Wichita, Kansas, supporting the planned entry into service at the end of 2019.

Chris Cholerton added: “The combination of outstanding performance, economy, and reliability levels make it the perfect fit for Bombardier’s newest Global aircraft and, with the Pearl engine, we are extending our successful relationship with Bombardier, which started more than 20 years ago. Together we made history by creating a whole new class of aircraft and that success story enters a new chapter today.”

David Coleal, President, Bombardier Business Aircraft, said: “The Global 5500 and Global 6500 aircraft have the longest range, the largest cabins and the smoothest ride in their class, and we are very proud that they will be powered by the advanced and efficient Pearl engine, purpose- built for these aircraft by our longstanding partners at Rolls-Royce.”

Designed for outstanding reliability, the Pearl family will be supported by the industry-leading Rolls-Royce CorporateCare® service, the most comprehensive aftermarket programme in business aviation, providing full transfer of off-wing maintenance risk at a predictable, fixed price. For a predefined hourly cost, CorporateCare covers all engine parts and labour when the time comes for the engine to be overhauled, whether for mandatory or recommended service bulletins as well as unscheduled shop visits.

The Pearl 15 also exemplifies Rolls-Royce’s IntelligentEngine vision of a future where product and service become indistinguishable thanks to advancements in digital capability. As well as a new-generation Engine Health Monitoring System that introduces advanced vibration detection, the engine benefits from the incorporation of advanced remote engine diagnostics and bi- directional communications that allow for easy remote reconfiguration of engine-monitoring features from the ground. In line with the IntelligentEngine vision, these developments ensure that cloud-based analytics and Big Data continue to play an increasing role in delivering exceptional levels of availability and greater peace of mind for customers.

To date, Rolls-Royce has delivered close to 1,700 engines to Bombardier.

About Rolls-Royce Holdings plc

1. Rolls-Royce pioneers cutting-edge technologies that deliver the cleanest, safest and most competitive solutions to meet our planet’s vital power needs.
2. Rolls-Royce has customers in more than 150 countries, comprising more than 400 airlines and leasing customers, 160 armed forces, 4,000 marine customers including 70 navies, and more than 5,000 power and nuclear customers.
3. Annual underlying revenue was £15 billion in 2017, around half of which came from the provision of aftermarket services. The firm and announced order book stood at £78.5 billion at the end of December 2017.
4. In 2017, Rolls-Royce invested £1.4 billion on research and development. We also support a global network of 31 University Technology Centres, which position Rolls-Royce engineers at the forefront of scientific research.
5. Rolls-Royce employs almost 50,000 people in 50 countries. More than 16,500 of these are engineers.
6. The Group has a strong commitment to apprentice and graduate recruitment and to further developing employee skills. In 2016 we recruited 274 graduates and 327 apprentices through our worldwide training programmes.

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Stefan Wriege
Communications Manager – Business Aviation

SOURCE: Rolls-Royce plc