Chinese engines anyone?

[Miles Magister]

Just take a look at how many Chinese people are on UK and US aeronautical engineering courses at Universities.

[PersonFromPorlock]

Back in 1937, everyone knew that the Japanese could only produce inferior copies of Western technology.... Just sayin'.

[notapilot15]

Originally Posted by esa-aardvark

Suggest you guys look at Chinese achievements & intentions in Space before
writing off their engine efforts.
John

Their space technology leap frogged with Hughes and Loral Aerospace screwup.

[Lonewolf_50]

Most people who use iphones may not appreciate how hard some folks in China work to produce parts of them.

[Wageslave]

Jet engine is nothing but bunch of cases, discs, blades and tubes of different materials and sizes. 3D imaging and metallurgy analysis is good enough to reverse engineer the hardware. Girls will get the control module software.

Notanengineer either.

[turboshaft]

Originally Posted by Flapping_Madly

Typical BBC accuracy. So China gets engines from GE and P&W do they. No mention of RR then.

From the context of the article, they were talking about where engines for China's current indigenous commercial aircraft are sourced from. Hence GE for the ARJ21 and P&WC for the MA60/600/700. RR would be relevant in the context of military aircraft (JH-7), though the less said about a certain Chinese warehouse visit to inspect ex-Phantom Spey engines the better.

Re: metallurgy, they've no doubt embraced the proud tradition of dumpster diving for metal shavings. (This approach even worked for the U.S. Navy when they were working to confirm the hull design of the Project 705/Alfa SSN.)

[vapilot2004]

Originally Posted by PersonFromPorlock

Back in 1937, everyone knew that the Japanese could only produce inferior copies of Western technology.... Just sayin'.

After the war and into the 1960s and 70s, anything made in Japan was considered junk. Today, that's where the good stuff comes from, particularly electronics. Now that perception paints China with the same reputation - except in many cases, it holds merit.

[rotor-rooter]

Couple of interesting stories regarding hacking into Safran and the former Turbomeca.

Hackers break into French defence industry ? TechEye

Exclusive: France's Snecma targeted by hackers - researcher | Reuters

There have been numerous stories circulating in the industry about breaches of Computer systems from other manufacturers as well.

[Una Due Tfc]

Originally Posted by vapilot2004

After the war and into the 1960s and 70s, anything made in Japan was considered junk. Today, that's where the good stuff comes from, particularly electronics. Now that perception paints China with the same reputation - except in many cases, it holds merit.

Even 10 years ago we all laughed at Korean cars. Now look.

[Turbine D]

The Russian jet engine designers have very good aerodynamic knowledge that is applied to their fan, compressor and turbine airfoil parts. What is significantly lacking is the capability to manufacture the parts to the design requirements. When the Soviet government owned and ran the jet engine businesses, everything was a paper transaction. The more engines produced, the better, full employment forever. What the parts cost, let alone total engines was a mystery. Maybe that is changing now, but it will take awhile.

Meanwhile, the story in China is different. They have very acceptable manufacturing knowhow and capabilities.What they have been lacking is good design knowhow and design experience. They are gaining that knowhow rapidly by one means or another. IMHO, they will be a major jet engine player quickly.

[up_down_n_out]

Originally Posted by Heathrow Harry

Well the Russians have tried to compete on engines for years and have always stuggled - the sort of stuff you can copy IS important but not as important as the quality of the supply chain for every item on the engine - and that you can't copy

As usual I have no idea where you get this nonsense from.
The airline industry is NOT a level playing field which is how Airbus and Boeing got where they are.

Care to take a look at Perm engines?
They're pumping the gas you use to cook your boiled eggs.
Perm Engine Company

Idem, are Antonov struggling?
Motor sich?
About - Motor Sich

Talking ignorant twaddle is inexcusable in a day and age of instant access to info!

[Tech Guy]

Originally Posted by Una Due Tfc

Even 10 years ago we all laughed at Korean cars. Now look.

They are pretty much at the top of the tree with shipbuilding now.
Small specialist vessels excluded.

[Turbine D]

up down n out,

As usual I have no idea where you get this nonsense from.
The airline industry is NOT a level playing field which is how Airbus and Boeing got where they are.

There are two industries, the aircraft industry and the aircraft engine industry. The playing fields for both (in the Western world) were level. The players today in both industries represent the "cream that rose to the top" as the saying goes. The players got there by ingenuity and timing, e.g., having the right product at the right time with the right quality and at the right price. Those that didn't have these attributes didn't survive. Government owned and run businesses generally fail to meet one or more of the attributes. They might survive, but they aren't the "cream of the crop".

[oldchina]

It's not only about technology.

When a customer spends hundreds of millions on airframes and engines it enters a 20 year marriage with the manufacturer. In response it expects impeccable support.
Unless the airlines believe the manufacturer gets the best possible person to develop and run support services the project will fail. In this regard the Russians have the same problem as the Chinese. No customer wants to discover the hard way that the responsive support chief has fallen foul of politics / corruption and has been replaced by a government croney.

[Turbine D]

notapiilot,

Jet engine is nothing but bunch of cases, discs, blades and tubes of different materials and sizes. 3D imaging and metallurgy analysis is good enough to reverse engineer the hardware. Girls will get the control module software.

So how do you reverse engineer the materials that go into a jet engine? How do you reverse engineer the specification composition limits? How do you reverse engineer the processes used to produce the materials? How do you reverse engineer the quality inspection methods and requirements?

I think you are in over your head with your jet engine quote.

[notapilot15]

Turbine D,

That is because you are thinking like a product engineer who depends on fundamental research for solutions, and proud for any innovation. They always think, it is so unique no one can reproduce. All a copier need is something performs similar to the genuine product.

Have you noticed the soft spoken, innocent intern in the corner cubicle working seriously.

[Heathrow Harry]

"As usual I have no idea where you get this nonsense from"

There is a very big difference in putting a big compressor on a fixed site on a gas pipeline and having an engine stuck on an aeroplane go from 0-40,000 ft for +20,000 hours

Some Russian military engines have been competitive in terms of performance but really poor in terms of reliability

Russian airframers have, in general, been much more competitive and in military terms they were often ahead

[Turbine D]

notapilot,

That is because you are thinking like a product engineer who depends on fundamental research for solutions, and proud for any innovation. They always think, it is so unique no one can reproduce.

Jet engines have been around for years, name a couple that have been reversed engineered. You should be able to answer the four questions I previously asked you if you were at all knowledgeable about jet engines... How I think isn't important. What I know you don't know is important.

[up_down_n_out]

Originally Posted by Turbine D

notapilot,
Jet engines have been around for years, name a couple that have been reversed engineered.
You should be able to answer the four questions I previously asked you if you were at all knowledgeable about jet engines....

Learning curves are tough things.
I remember Yamaha's pathetic attempts to prove they could make a F1 engine.

I can think of a certain leading aerospace country that unsuccessfully tried to reverse engineer Concorde making it considerably larger, heavier and with a different construction.
It was a recipe for failure, which of course that was what it became.

The rest is history.
BA concorde would still be flying today if hadn't been for french sabotage.
The TU144 scarcely ever flew successfully and kept breaking down or up.

Putin's KGB didn't need sabotage, the wound was self inflicted from the start.

Talking of which the only thing they can so far be proud of, for supersonic freighters is the TU160, and that's was monumentally unreliable to begin with.

Dropping bombs on people leads to remarkably rapid progress usually.

[Turbine D]

Some Russian military engines have been competitive in terms of performance but really poor in terms of reliability

Same can be said for their commercial engines, at least under the Soviet system of operating. The way it worked, taking a four engine airliner like a Boeing 707, was this: The State run airline ordered a new airliner and one of the engine producers got an order for 16 engines. Then once the new aircraft began flying, 12 of the engines rotated into the engine inventory. Meantime, four engines were enroute back to the engine source for repair, four repaired engines were enroute to the airline engine depot and four engines were awaiting installation on an aircraft. On wing life was awful. This was related to me by Soviet aircraft engine officials during visits to various engine plants including Perm who I did think was the best of the bunch on the commercial side of the business. In all of this, no actual money was involved in the transactions, just paper orders from Central Planning.