I have already written here about a new diesel aircraft, manufactured by a Russian company. Now they can, and Italian aircraft manufacturer, has obtained certification for its new private plane equipped with the diesel engine. Diesel engines seem quite promising for aviation. Indeed, the more they can turn regularly without interruption, the better they perform in terms of fuel economy and reliability. Just think about trucks, trains and ships harnessing the power of diesel engines which last normally more than 30 years. Unless you use it for very short trips, less than 5 km, a diesel engine burns 40% less fuel than a gasoline engine, which also greatly improves its range. For these reasons, safety durability and fuel economy, these are aircraft should be very suitable for private flights charter companies.
About the environmental impact of diesel engines
I have already written here about a new diesel aircraft, manufactured by a Russian company. Now they can, and Italian aircraft manufacturer, has obtained certification for its new private plane equipped with the diesel engine. Diesel engines seem quite promising for aviation. Indeed, the more they can turn regularly without interruption, the better they perform in terms of fuel economy and reliability. Just think about trucks, trains and ships harnessing the power of diesel engines which last normally more than 30 years. Unless you use it for very short trips, less than 5 km, a diesel engine burns 40% less fuel than a gasoline engine, which also greatly improves its range. For these reasons, safety durability and fuel economy, these are aircraft should be very suitable for private flights charter companies.
Diesel engines are often criticized because they are considered too polluting. Especially the fact that they emit fine particles, the Pm10 and Pm 2.5. Which pollute our cities. Nevertheless, since an aircraft emission is mostly produced at high altitudes, these particles fall into the ground thanks to wind and rain, without floating in the air that we breathe, as is the case for car pollution.
The European aviation authority EASA has issued type certification for the Tecnam P2010 TDI shoulder-wing aircraft with diesel drive. The diesel single engine should score with a very low fuel consumption.
Here are some specifications:
- Max Cruise Speed 136 – KTAS 252 km/h
- Range 1050 NM – 1940 km
- Fuel Consumption 5.2 USG/h -19.5 lt/hr. At a cruise speed of 180 km/h, it’s 9 lt/1 00 km, or 11 km/lt, less than a diesel car driving at the same speed.
It was only in May that the company presented the single-engine diesel engine via live stream. The FADEC-controlled Continental engine should score with very low operating costs, emphasized Tecnam in a press release. The turbo-diesel / JetA1 engine with 170 hp offers excellent fuel consumption of 4.5 USG / h (17 liters / h) with 55 percent power up to 7 USG / h (27 liters / h) with 75 percent power.
With its single-lever operation and electronic engine monitoring as well as redundant control systems, the diesel engine guarantees a high level of safety, according to the manufacturer. In addition, the CD-170 is the most powerful engine in the CD-100 series and has proven itself with more than 6000 engines delivered and over 7.1 million flight hours.
“The approval of a new aircraft is always a great success for us and for the aviation community, especially when the best professionals from the agency and our company are involved, setting the latest standard for safety and innovation,” said Paolo Pascale, CEO of Tecnam . “The P Twenty-Ten remains a modern aircraft for flight schools and home owners. And now, with the Continental JetA1 / diesel engine, it is the ideal aircraft that combines a modern, sleek, ‘green’ design with consistent, rugged performance,” he said Pascale.
“The type certification for the Tecnam P2010 TDI is a significant milestone in the commercial use of JetA1 / diesel engines for flight schools and private owners,” said Jürgen Schwarz, Executive Vice President of Commercial Business at Continental Aerospace Technologies. “We are proud to partner with Tecnam to enable pilots to fly a ‘green’ aircraft design with robust performance. The CD-170 JetA1 engine technology and the availability of diesel fuel will enable P2010 TDI operators to concentrate on flight operations instead of the fuel mixture and possibly a limited flight range, “emphasized Jürgen Schwarz.