Diamond Aircraft has changed the engine supplier for its DART military trainer aircraft to speed up certification.
Pratt & Whitney Canada (PWC) will supply its already certified 750shp PT6A-25C turboprop engine, and the aircraft is renamed as the DART-750. Basic EASA certification of the DART-750 aerobatic trainer is expected end of 2023.
The PWC unit replaces the GE Aviation 550shp H75-A engine intended for the aircraft. GE Aviation has yet to issue a statement.
The CEO of Diamond Aircraft Austria, Liqun (Frank) Zhang, said, “After careful consideration, we came to the conclusion that an adjustment of the DART program was necessary in order to move forward with the aircraft certification process.
“To meet our target timeline and as the window of opportunity on the market as well as with interested customers is limited, we decided – in close consultation with our R&D department – to pursue our DART program with the proven and certified 750 SHP PT6A-25C turboprop engine from Pratt & Whitney Canada.”
The DART-750 will come with the state-of-the-art Garmin G3000 avionics suite and optional ejection seats.
Zhang added, “With bringing the DART-750 to the market, Diamond Aircraft will be the only manufacturer that is covering the complete range of basic flight training. The aircraft is already considered for many programs all over the world.
“We are seeing a huge potential for the aircraft in the government training market. The unmatched price-performance ratio will make the DART the perfect choice for future basic training of pilots.”
Unsurprisingly, PWC is delighted with seeing off GE Aviation. Anthony Rossi, Vice President, Business Development, Pratt & Whitney Canada, said, “We worked closely with Diamond Aircraft on determining the best powerplant for the new DART-750 acrobatic trainer program and believe Diamond Aircraft have made an excellent choice in selecting the PT6A-25C engine.”
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