Says A "Big Announcement" Is Coming

Ian Walsh, Vice President and General Manager of Lycoming Engines, spoke Monday at AirVenture 2006... just hours after the first flyby of Cessna's new Next Generation airplane.

Walsh used the opportunity to announce the engine spinning the prop was a Lycoming... and also emphasized that Lycoming is also working on its own next generation of engines.

Lycoming's new Advanced Technology Center, or ATC, will not only refine and improve its current crop of engines but will also design a complete range of four, six, and eight-cylinder engines that will comprise a "family" of common manufacturing techniques and parts.

Along with promises of a "big announcement" on Friday (July 28), Walsh hinted that he would be announcing FADEC control for some Lycoming engines by Oshkosh 2007... and that the company would be fully compliant with AS9100 (a very high industrial standard) by the end of the year.

In addition to promoting Lycoming's new line of Thunderbolt engines, Walsh also said that Lycoming would be creating new non-certificated engines for the LSA market, which he intended to eventually convert into fully certificated models.

Heavy fuel engines are also on the to-do list for Lycoming as the availability and cost of avgas becomes increasingly problematic.

FMI: www.textron.lycoming.com