Page 28 - Volume 11 Number 1

 Turbine inlet temperature (ITT) set at a level on and were smart enough to know which questions to
consistent with turbine disks weight, but higher temperatures will be possible if integrally cast turbine wheels prove feasible.
Armed with a design that had been well thought out, the Canadians traveled down to Hartford where their proposal squared off against one from engineers at PWA. After considerable study, PWC’s DS­10 was selected for further development. Hartford also set aside $4.4 million to construct four prototypes and proceed with a 50­hour test program. One PWC team member recalled that in the wake of their victory, the engineering challenges that lie ahead would be significant. “Everyone understood that the engine program would evolve in response to the market,” and that PWC’s marketeers would have to work long and hard to sign customers if the program was to be successful.
In addition to the technical obstacles that would have to be overcome, financing was another concern. The majority of the cost burden in bringing the DS­10 (soon designated the PT6) to market would be borne by PWC. A large chunk of that money would come from the ongoing sale of spare parts for Pratt & Whitney’s R­1340 and R­1820 radial engines. In January 1959, the Canadian government agreed to provide $1.2 million to help carry the team through 30 months of tests leading to the 50­ hour goal of flight qualification. The agreement called for PWC to provide four PT6A­2 engines for the tests and another four PT6A­2 or PT6A­B2 for further development.
Full of enthusiasm that was tempered by the reality of the risks associated with a major engine development program, the Canadian team went to work fabricating and building the first engine. “This was the first time we tried to put a gas turbine to­
gether,” said team member, Allan
Newland. “It is not surprising that
we showed a great deal of inexpe­
rience in what we did. We had no
history, no experience as a team
and only brought to the situation
what background we had as indi­
viduals. This was a far cry from
what would happen in a mature
organization with a long history
of design.”6
Newland further commented that, “Our inexperience did, however, have a positive aspect – we were uninhibited. We had no past failures, and we had all the expertise in Hartford to draw
ask when consulting with people there. They keenly shared their knowledge and experience. To say that this rubbed off on us would be an understatement.”7 As for PWC’s marketing department, they faced an uphill climb to attract customers to the untested, unproven PT6 engine. In 1959 they waged a worldwide campaign and managed to generate great interest, including 70 companies in the United States. Of these, six showed potential, including the Beech Aircraft Corporation.
The future looked bright for the PT6, but it would be another five years and many millions of dollars before the first production engine was shipped to a customer. KA
NOTES:
1. Sullivan, Kenneth H. and Milberry, Larry: “Power—The Pratt &
Whitney Canada Story;” CANAV Books, 1989. Other companies already had development underway for small turbine engines, including programs in France, Great Britain and the United States.
2. Ibid
3. Ibid
4. The CL­41 was selected by the RCAF over the Cessna T­37, British
Jet Provost and the French Fouga Magister, and 212 eventually were built. The JT12 (military J60) lost out to the General Electric J85 that was built under license by Orenda in Toronto. The JT12, however, was installed in the four­engine Lockheed Jetstar and North American Sabreliner business jets, versions of which also operated with the U.S. Air Force and Navy.
5. Sullivan, Kenneth H., and Milberry, Larry: “Power—The Pratt & Whitney Canada Story;” CANAV Books, 1989.
6. Ibid 7. Ibid
Ed Phillips, now retired and living in the South, has researched and written eight books on the unique and rich aviation history that belongs to Wichita, Kan. His writings have focused on the evolution of the airplanes, companies and people that have made Wichita the “Air Capital of the World” for more than 80 years.
A part of the team that developed and built the first PT6 posed for the camera at Pratt & Whitney Canada’s facility in Longueil near Montreal. (PW&C ARCHIVES)
26 • KING AIR MAGAZINE
JANUARY 2017