Rolls-Royce Trent jet engines

Post Reply New Topic

Do anyone here know how easy are Rolls-Royce Trent 500s to maintain compared to Pratt & Whitney JT9Ds or GE CF6-50s?

I heard people claim that outfitting a Boeing 747 Classic (i.e. 747-100/200/300/SP) or, taken to the extreme, a Boeing 747-400/D with RR Trent 500s would allow Boeing 747 operators to save on maintenance costs (especially in the case of 747 Classics, who use older engines such as the JT9Ds or the CF6-50s).

I do know, however, that, compared to a JT9D or a CF6-50, a Trent 500 (either the 53,000 or 56,000 lbf version if used in a 747 Classic) can save at least 15% fuel compared to its older counterparts.

I wouldn't know. But it probably would result in both a more fuel-efficient (like you said) and quieter aircraft, especially if it was previously fitted with JT9Ds.

Speaking of classic aircraft, I would love to have been able to fly on a 707. I love classic planes...

It's funny how a teenager such as myself can get nostalgic about a decade they never lived through... I miss the '70s... *sigh*...

Trent 500s are used to power aircraft that have similar weights and capacity; the 56,000 lbf version of the Trent 500 powers the Airbus A340-600, whose MTOW is akin to that of a Boeing 747-200/300 (837,800 lb for the A340-600 vs. 833,000 for the B747-200/300).

And even the most powerful engine fitted on 747 Classics only had 54,750 lbf of power. Take a fully loaded aircraft of each type, both at maximum payload:

Boeing 747-300: 416 passengers and 57,000 lbs of freight (since we have less cargo hold space in a 747-200B than in an A340-600) and we have 528,000 lbs without adding a drop of fuel

Airbus A340-600: 380 passengers but we have 66,000 lbs of freight, and we still have 528,000 lbs without adding a drop of fuel

Range: 12,400 km in the B747-300 with JT9D-7R4G2s vs. 15,900 km in the A340-600 with Trent 500s (if both aircraft have a ramp weight of 833,000 lbs). Result: Trent 500s are much more fuel-efficient.

Trents are used mostly on Airbus planes - but the Boeing 777 has options for Trent 700s. I would imagine easier than RB211s.
The 747-200/300/400 had options for GE CF6 and RR RB211 engines, besides Pratt JT9D/PW4056/PW4062.

The Trent engines fitted on Boeing 777s are Trent 800s, (Cathay Pacific, Thai Airways, Emirates Airlines, British Airways, American Airlines and Singapore Airlines are the primary users of Trent 800s)

Trent 500s, 700s and 900s, true, are fitted on Airbus aircraft, but did you forget the Trent 1000s fitted on some of the Boeing 787s under construction? And we're now talking about re-engining some of the later A380s to Trent XWBs (since the Trent XWB would be more fuel-efficient while still providing the same kind of power).

Rolls-Royce has a 50% market share in the Boeing 777, Airbus A380 (for the A380 it's only because Emirates ordered Engine Alliance engines, otherwise it would have been much higher) and Airbus A330; it is the sole engine option on the A340NG and the A350. However, for the Boeing 787, it only has 35% (GE has the remaining 65%).