INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Rolls-Royce and Honeywell have
welcomed the selection of the CTS800-powered AgustaWestland Super Lynx 300 by
the South African Department of Defence. The T800/CTS800 engine family is
designed and built by the Light Helicopter Turbine Engine Company (LHTEC), a
50:50 joint venture between Rolls-Royce and Honeywell.
The recently-signed contract is for four Super Lynx 300 helicopters which
will be operated by the South African National Defence Force and will be
utilised as a ship-borne helicopter operating from the new MEKO class
corvettes.
These helicopters will benefit from the more powerful 1,329 shp CTS800-4N
engine which, complemented with a Full Authority Digital Engine Control
(FADEC), deliver low maintenance, enhanced performance and excellent economy
with over 30% more power.
John Boughton, Marketing and Sales Director for Rolls-Royce Defence, said:
"Rolls-Royce has powered the Lynx family throughout its successful history and
this latest order from South Africa shows that the CTS800 is ideally qualified
to provide customers with the performance and reliability they require in the
future."
This important contract represents another significant chapter in the Lynx
300 success story following previous orders from Malaysia, Oman and Thailand.
Malaysia is due to take delivery of the first three of its Super Lynx Mk.100
aircraft at the end of this month. Firm orders for the Super Lynx 300 family,
widely regarded as the best in its class, now stand at twenty-eight aircraft.
A CTS800-based Future Lynx upgrade is also being offered to the UK
Ministry of Defence to meet the future requirements of the UK armed services
under the British Army's Battlefield Light Utility Helicopter (BLUH) and the
Royal Navy's Surface Combatant Maritime Rotorcraft (SCMR) programs.
Incorporating improved avionics and a comprehensive structural upgrade, the
cost-effective Future Lynx upgrade would extend the life of the current Lynx
fleet by 20 years.
Setting a new benchmark in engine performance and reliability, the LHTEC
T800/CTS800 family was originally developed to power the US Army's Boeing
Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche stealth helicopter. The first of 34 growth 1,680 shp
T800-LHT-802 engines for the engineering, manufacturing and development (EMD)
phase of the Comanche program are due to be delivered in March 2004, and
present plans call for 650 Comanches to enter service from 2009.
The commercial CTS800 family shares 60% commonality with the Comanche T800
engine, including its modular design, FADEC control, high reliability, low
fuel consumption and low maintenance requirements. The CTS800, which features
an optional speed-reduction gearbox, is now in production for the Super Lynx
300 and the Shin Maywa US-1A Kai boundary layer control (BLC) system. Growth
1,600 shp class versions of the CTS800 are also being offered for emerging
civil and military applications.
Notes:
1) LHTEC is a 50:50 joint venture between Rolls-Royce and Honeywell
Engines & Systems.
2) Further details of the LHTEC T800 family can be found at http://www.LHTEC.com
SOURCE Light Helicopter Turbine Engine Company
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Related links:
http://www.LHTEC.com
http://www.rolls-royce.com http://www.honeywell.com
CONTACT:
Nick Britton, Communications Manager -
Defence, of Rolls-Royce plc, +44-0-117-979-5943, or
nick.britton@rolls-royce.com, or Bill Reavis, Manager, Aerospace
Media Relations, of Honeywell Aerospace, +1-602-365-2055, or
bill.reavis@honeywell.com
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