Air India Holding Company To Set Up Engine Wash Service

MRO

Aviation Daily Jul 21 , 2010 , p. 15
Neelam Mathews

The holding company of Air India, the National Aviation Company of India Ltd., has signed an agreement with Pratt & Whitney to set up an EcoPower engine wash service at Mumbai International Airport.

P&W says its patented engine wash system reduces fuel burn by as much as 1.2%, eliminating three pounds of carbon dioxide emissions for every pound of fuel saved, while decreasing engine gas temperature and increasing the amount of time an engine can stay on wing. The agreement will enable Air India to offer the services to other carriers in the region.

The service center can perform washes on nearly all commercial engines in service, including the PW4000, CFM56-5/-7, V2500, CF6-80C2 and GE90-100. An EcoPower engine wash, according to the company, takes about an hour, which it says is up to six times faster than other current methods. It requires fewer hookups, less equipment to install and less disassembly. “This will help airlines reduce their operating costs and emissions, ” said K.M. Unni, head of SBU (MRO-Airframe).

“This partnership will expand the availability of EcoPower engine wash services to India, one of the world’s fastest-growing aviation markets,” says Joanne Hastings, P&W's director-Line Maintenance Services. “The service is especially valued since fuel prices in India are among the highest in the world.”