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Another diesel?

Non Answer for sure

Quote from their site.


"Who's using our Engines?

A question very commonly asked is: “Which aircraft already use this Engine?”.

To provide prospective buyers with an answer to this question, we will be relying on the help of our customers to provide us with pictures and comments regarding their particular engine installation. Not all installations are published here as we only wish to show pictures with consent of the owner."

My spidey sense it tingling .......
 
I haven't. Diesel operating at -55C? 300hp from a 2.1L with a TBO of 2000 hours and only 353 pounds... Quite impressive.:rolleyes:

A photo of Raptor on their site under the "who is using our engines? section" -which doesn't use their engine but rather a homespun Audi V6 conversion.
 
What's wrong with a diesel, or Jet-A piston engine operating at -55*c? Nobody would expect it to start if cold soaked. However if it's already running, kept at proper operating temperature and has fuel heaters (common in turbine aircraft), what would stop it from running?
 
More broadband wasted on yet another crazy diesel alternative engine with zero chance of commercial success. And I just have to laugh when I see the 2000 hours TBO figure. They just pluck these figures out of thin air.

We'll all be flying behind electric motors before any of these diesel alternatives prove to be both reliable and cost effective.
 
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What's wrong with a diesel, or Jet-A piston engine operating at -55*c? Nobody would expect it to start if cold soaked. However if it's already running, kept at proper operating temperature and has fuel heaters (common in turbine aircraft), what would stop it from running?

The problem would be keeping it lit when descending since most require at least 40 inches at altitude, keeping it warm, keeping the fuel warm and keeping you warm. There isn't enough heat generated to do all of this at -55C like on a turbine. Re-lighting at altitude and these OATs would be challenging as well.

I suspect it has never been tested at this temp. Most aero diesels put a temperature cap at -30C on kerosene and as high as -5C on diesel.

The Austro E4 requires min 50C on oil and 60C on coolant as well.

Remember, CI engines rely on the heat of compression to light off the fuel. Drop the temps that far, combine with low MAP and they will stop.
 
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Looks like they are pretty new and have one flying test bed. Their site has photos of many other aircraft, none of which appear to be powered by their engines. No mention of testing regime, ground run hours, flight hours, how many examples flying etc. This would be important in my view before investing in a new engine design.

I'll put this out there to others developing engines for the aero market. You need this info on your website. I've asked 2 others here and on HBA to comment on the testing program and hours on their new engines and they've completely ignored the questions. To me, this means they don't have much testing done which means to me, you shouldn't even be thinking of releasing their new engines to paying customers. It also reflects badly on their credibility.

Listing any TBO figure without at least one engine getting that many hours on it without problems is just a guess. Only actual running under similar to flight conditions (with prop in place) will validate.

FEA is also no substitute for actual hard running as we've seen on some "big block" Lycoming clones with serious crankshaft problems.

It's easy to make lofty claims, much harder to back them up without real world results.

There should be no rush to get to market without a solid, comprehensive, test program behind any new engine design. Usually this incomplete testing just bites both the manufacturer and initial customers.
 
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