The AES100, China's first domestically developed civil aviation engine series, has shown exceptional performance featuring remarkable stability and adaptability under challenging conditions, according to its manufacturer Aero Engine Corporation of China (AECC).
The AECC announced in mid-November that it has signed purchase orders and cooperation contracts for the supply of over 1,500 engines of the AES100 series, with a total order value exceeding 10 billion yuan (about 1.39 billion U.S. dollars).
This is the largest number of orders it has ever received in history, according to the Chinese aero engine maker at the week-long 15th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, also known as Airshow China, which ended in the port city of Zhuhai in south China's Guangdong Province on November 17.
The AES100 engine, the main model behind the record-breaking contracts, is one of the company's star exhibits at the airshow.
It obtained the type certificate from the Civil Aviation Administration of China just three months ago, marking a milestone in the country's independent development of advanced civil aero engines.
"The AES100 is a 1,000-kilowatt-class turboshaft engine that also supports a turboprop variant for general aviation fixed-wing aircraft and drones. It can power hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles as well as hybrid-electric fixed-wing aircraft. At present, our testing is going quite smoothly, and the overall situation is looking good," said Li Xin, deputy director of AECC Hunan Power Machinery Research Institute.
Designed to support general aviation and the burgeoning low-altitude economy, the AES100 targets the vast market opportunities arising from China's focus on this sector.
The engine shows exceptional reliability, performing safely and stably under challenging conditions such as icing, heavy rain and strong electromagnetic interference.
When mounted on helicopters, it enables a range of operations, including patrols, rescues, sightseeing and business flights.
"Market demand has driven us to accelerate the development of products that meet the users' demand. For different customer groups in the low-altitude economy, we are continuously enriching our product configurations to cater to various power requirements," Li said.
The AECC also unveiled a report on the civil aero engine market during the airshow, forecasting that the Chinese market is expected to receive 19,000 aero engines, over one-fifth of the global market share, in the next two decades, with a total value exceeding 300 billion U.S. dollars.
China's groundbreaking AES100 aviation engine shows exceptional performance
