Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6
Turboprop aircraft engine family by Pratt & Whitney Canada / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
The Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 is a turboprop aircraft engine produced by Pratt & Whitney Canada. Its design was started in 1958, it first ran in February 1960, first flew on 30 May 1961, entered service in 1964, and has been continuously updated since. The PT6 consists of two basic sections: a gas generator with accessory gearbox, and a free-power turbine with reduction gearbox. In aircraft, the engine is often mounted "backwards," with the intake at the rear and the exhaust at the front, so that the turbine is directly connected to the propeller. Many variants of the PT6 have been produced, not only as turboprops but also as turboshaft engines for helicopters, land vehicles, hovercraft, and boats; as auxiliary power units; and for industrial uses. By November 2015, 51,000 had been produced, which had logged 400 million flight hours from 1963 to 2016. It is known for its reliability, with an in-flight shutdown rate of 1 per 651,126 hours in 2016. The PT6A turboprop engine covers the power range between 580 and 1,940 shp (430 and 1,450 kW), while the PT6B/C are turboshaft variants for helicopters.
PT6 | |
---|---|
A PT6A-20 on display at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum | |
Type | Turboprop / turboshaft |
National origin | Canada |
Manufacturer | Pratt & Whitney Canada |
First run | 1960[1] |
Major applications | AgustaWestland AW139 Beech King Air and Super King Air Cessna 208 Caravan de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter Pilatus PC-12 SOCATA TBM |
Number built | 51,000 (as of November 2015)[2][needs update] |
Variants | Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6T |