PARIS, France - The T700/T6E and CT7-8 turboshaft engines, the newest members of GE's T700/CT7 engine family, are progressing on schedule, continuing the pattern of notable success that has characterized this T700/CT7 growth program since its launch in 1994. The engines are being developed as an integrated program by GE (USA)* Aircraft Engines and FiatAvio, with Hamilton Standard providing the FADEC (full authority digital electronic control) system. The T700/T6E, specifically designed for the NH90 helicopter, will be co-produced worldwide by GE Aircraft Engines, FiatAvio, and Motoren und Turbinen Union M¸nchen (MTU), a subsidiary of DaimlerChrysler. Together, Fiat and MTU will produce from 50 to 70 percent of the engine, depending upon the market. Also, the intent is for BGT, a German engine control manufacturer, to produce the FADEC for the German NH90 helicopters, under a license agreement with Hamilton Standard. T700/T6E qualification by the Italian Ministry of Defense is targeted for 2002, and deliveries are targeted to begin in 2003. Flight testing of the NH90 multi-role, medium-lift helicopter powered by T700/T6E engines continues at Agusta's Cascina Costa plant in Italy. To date, the engines have accumulated over 100 hours of flight testing with no engine removals and no in-flight shutdowns. The spare engine has never been utilized. Flight testing has demonstrated operation at 20,000 feet (including air start capability at 10,000 feet), operation to 167 knots, basic engine checkout, a broad spectrum of maneuvers, high forward speed runs, inlet distortion capability, bay cooling effectiveness and autorotation recoveries. In addition, the T700/T6E-powered NH90 is the only aircraft of its type to have demonstrated shipboard capability, having successfully completed 60 landings on a French frigate. The engines performed flawlessly throughout the landings and provided the aircraft single-engine hover capability. The T700/T6E engine was recently modified to incorporate an optional inlet particle separator (IPS). Designated the T700/T6E1, the engine successfully completed, on April 29, the first in a series of test flights that will comprise a total of 60 flight hours. The ongoing T6E/NH90 flight test program follows more than 2,600 hours of successful factory testing over a wide range of conditions, during which the T700/T6E met all NH90 rating points with margin and demonstrated power in excess of 3,000 shaft horsepower-more than the NH90 emergency power requirements. The T700/T6E engine family offers the NH90 the opportunity to fly at NH90 production power levels during the flight test program. The NH90 helicopter is being developed by NHIndustries, a consortium of Agusta of Italy, Eurocopter (France), Eurocopter Deutschland, and Fokker Aviation of the Netherlands. The NH90 sponsoring nations continue to evaluate the T700/T6E against the RTM322 for their NH90 helicopter programs. Outside of France and England, where the RTM322 is manufactured, the T700 has won every competition in which the two have competed. These wins include the Canadian government's EH Industries Ltd. (EHI) Cormorant search and rescue helicopters, the Dutch government's Boeing AH-64D helicopters and, most recently, the Singapore government's Boeing AH-64D helicopters. The CT7-8 engine, the civil variant of the T700/T6E engine series, has been selected to power the Sikorsky S-92 medium-lift helicopter. The engine will be co-produced worldwide by GE Aircraft Engines and FiatAvio. Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC) of Taiwan will also be a risk-sharing participant in the production program. Completion of all testing required for certification of the CT7-8 engine by the FAA and the European Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) is targeted for mid-2000, and CT7-8 engine deliveries are targeted to begin in 2001. The initial S-92 prototype aircraft, powered by CT7-6D engines with a takeoff rating of 2,030 shaft horsepower (shp), completed its first flight in January. Since then, approximately 60 flight hours have been completed without an engine problem. The three remaining prototypes and all production S-92 Helibus helicopters will be powered by CT7-8 engines rated at 2,400 shp takeoff power. First flight of a CT7-8-powered S-92 prototype is targeted for early July. The full flight test program will be conducted at altitudes ranging from sea level to 20,000 feet and temperatures ranging from -25( to 33(C. Testing entails hover to 167 knots forward speed, extensive maneuvers, and functional checks such as air restarts, bay cooling, vibration, fault injection, and autorotation optimization. The Sikorsky S-92 Helibus is expected to serve a range of needs throughout the world in passenger, cargo, aeromedical, search and rescue, resource development support, and other applications. Ed Birtwell, general manager of GE Aircraft Engines' T700/CT7 Project, said, "The flight test programs are exceeding all expectations. Proven advanced technologies enable these growth engines to achieve significant performance gains while retaining the reliabilty and maintainability features of the industry-standard-setting T700/CT7 engine family."