Engine Noise: Will costly mods reshape engine market share for narrowbody freighters?

With redeliveries of the previous generation of narrowbody freighters humming along, even as new types become available, there has never been more choice among aircraft models and STCs. Given that engine acquisition and maintenance costs represent one of the more significant costs of acquiring a converted freighter, engine considerations now rank in importance among feedstock decisions for aircraft models with multiple engine types available. While the 737NGs have just one engine type available, both CFM and International Aero Engines (IAE) offer powerplants for the A321-200. As of Aug. 31, just six freighter-converted A321-200s have been redelivered: five converted according to an EFW STC, and one converted by 321 Precision Conversions. Among these six, SmartLynx Malta and Titan Airways each have two CFM56 powered A321-200Fs, while the two A321-200P2Fs in the Australia-based Qantas Freight fleet are equipped with IAE V2500 engines. Making noise With A321 conversions just getting off the ground, there is not yet a dominant winner in terms of engine market share. Of the eleven A321-200s Cargo Facts knows to be either in conversion or slated for conversion, four are V2500 powered and seven are CFM powered. Compliance with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Noise Standards is one variable that could reshape engine decisions. SmartLynx Malta, which operates an A321-200PCF (891, ex-Air Mediterranee) on behalf of DHL, recently installed a noise reduction modification kit on the CFM engines powering the aircraft. The upgrade brings the aircraft into compliance with the Chapter 4 Noise Standard contained in ICAO’s Annex 16, Volume 1, introduced in 2001. Like previous updates to the noise Certification Standards in 1973 and 1977, Stage 4, as it’s known in the United States, represented a further increase in noise stringency of a cumulative 10 decibels in effective perceived noise (EPNdB), “a measure of human annoyance to aircraft noise,” according to ICAO. While the requirements only applied to new aircraft certified from Jan. 1, 2006, many airports, particularly in Europe, require Chapter 4 compliance for overnight operations, or charge steep fees for aircraft out of compliance. For V2500s powering the A321-200, the engine type is already Chapter 4 compliant by a margin of about 3 EPNdB, according to Pratt & Whitney. Early CFM56 engines, however, exceeded the Chapter 4 Noise Standard by about 3.2 EPNdB. “The V2500 design features consisting of a common flow nozzle, optimized blade and vane spacing and acoustic treatment, deliver the engine’s low noise benefit,” said Larry Gray, senior marketing manager at Pratt & Whitney. The mixing of the core and bypass air prior to the exhaust exit plane has the effect of reducing noise-creating shearing effect that would otherwise result from the two streams of air moving at different velocities, interacting with the ambient air. The CFM56 is a separate-flow engine with bypass air outside of the core. Knowing that compliance would later become an issue of concern, Airbus and CFM, along with nacelle manufacturer Goodrich Aerostructures Group (GAG), back in 2016 started developing a modification to bring the engine type into Stage 4 compliance. The early solution modifies the thrust reverser structure to increase the acoustic area and overlays a chevron nozzle to reduce shear between the bypass air and the core air by mixing the airflow. Since 2006, “acoustic treated thrust reversers and nozzle, with associated noise reduction, have become the production standard of the A321ceo with CFM engines,” Airbus told Cargo Facts . While younger engines arriving for passenger-to-freighter conversion are already fitted with the modification, “the retrofit remains an option for operators targeting to operate under Chap 4 regulations,” Airbus said. Airbus also confirmed it supported an amendment to EFW’s A321P2F STC last year, “through a specific acoustic certification dossier.” SmartLynx, which is flying its first A321 freighter between Leipzig (LEJ) and Linz (LNZ) overnight, told Cargo Facts that only a limited number of MSNs have the modified thrust reversers, which run around $2.5 million each. Chevrons, meanwhile, cost approximately $120,000-$150,000. “It can be a bit of a nightmare if you’re flying high-thrust operations,” said SmartLynx Vice President of Sales and Development Edvinas Demenius. SmartLynx’s second aircraft, an A321-200P2F (1017, ex-R Airlines) which lessor Vallair ferried to Montpellier earlier in August, has now also had the acoustic kit fitted to its CFM engines and will be ready for service around mid-September, the carrier confirmed to Cargo Facts . Meanwhile, three of the four A321s that SmartLynx leases from GTLK Europe, and that will rejoin the fleet as freighters, are relatively newer builds that already have the kit installed. Titan Airways, the only other operator with CFM-powered A321Fs in service as of the end of August, does also have the modification on its two units. One of those (1238, ex-Thomas Cook Airlines) is flying between Cologne (CGN) and Rennes (RNS) on behalf of UPS, with the other (1250, ex-Thomas Cook Airlines) flying around Central America on behalf of Amerijet. Historically, modifications to reduce noise have inflicted a slight fuel-burn penalty, carriers and engine OEMs have told Cargo Facts . Airbus said in the December 2005 issue of its FAST magazine that software tweaks could offset some of the efficiency losses, and told Cargo Facts , “No fuel burn impact is associated with the modification.” However, with the limited number of A321-200Fs currently in service, there is little data to compare. Mixing engines on converted freighters While noise compliance issues are not expected to be an issue for medium widebody converted fleet, Pratt & Whitney engines are making inroads in later 767-300 conversions, a type previously dominated by GE engines. Of the approximately 140 freighter-converted 767-300s flying today, 130 are GE CF6-powered, while nine are equipped with PW4000 engines. Following a wave of passenger aircraft retirements during the past eighteen months, some thirteen PW4000-powered aircraft are now in conversion, or are slated for conversion, Pratt & Whitney told Cargo Facts in June. Mike Berger, chief commercial officer of Air Transport Services Group, said earlier this year that the group’s leasing arm, Cargo Aircraft Management (CAM) — the largest lessor of 767Fs — was looking at converting 767-300ERs with PW4000s. Since then, CAM has acquired a couple of Pratt-powered units previously in Air Canada’s fleet. The A330 conversion, largely seen as the 767s successor, is starting to gain traction. EFW has now redelivered eight A330-300P2Fs and three A330-200P2Fs. While Pratt & Whitney PW4000s were delivered in large numbers with early A330 deliveries, Rolls-Royce’s Trent 700 engines later became the dominant type. Additionally, through a partnership with EFW that began last year, Rolls-Royce has solidified the grip of its Trent 700 engine on the freighter conversion market. All three of the A330s that EFW redelivered from September 2020 through the end of August 2021 were -300P2Fs with Trent 700s. Of the eleven aircraft that EFW has now redelivered overall, five are -300P2Fs with Trents, three are -300P2Fs with PW4000s, and three are -200P2Fs with Trents. With younger airframes increasingly favored for conversion, Rolls-Royce’s dominance appears set to continue in the near term. All the aircraft currently known to be in conversion or earmarked for conversion have Trent 700s. These include at least two more -300s for DHL Express; two -300s for MNG Airlines; two -300s for CDB Aviation; and two -200s for Altavair. Amid the high turnover seen in today’s market, as well as the continued diversification of the global fleet with newer freighter types, further shifts in the manufacturers’ market share can be expected. At the end of the day, engine choice for cargo conversions is ultimately a reflection of cost and reliability. “There’s always an appetite for a low cost of ownership,” said Aileen Barton, director of services marketing at GE Aviation, at Cargo Facts Symposium 2020. “That’s tied from the engine performance to the whole servicing of that asset. It’s really dependent on the supply and demand factors and having that material available is critical to support.” This story originally appeared in the September 2021 issue of Cargo Facts . Cargo Facts Symposium, taking place LIVE Oct. 25-27 at the Wynn Las Vegas, is the essential event for stakeholders in the air cargo industry. Learn more and register at www.cargofactssymposium.com .

Engine Noise: Will costly mods reshape engine market share for narrowbody freighters?

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