BRP announced at EAA AirVenture its intent to produce a more powerful version of its immensely popular Rotax 912/914 series of engines. The turbocharged four-cylinder Rotax 915 iS is designed to produce up to 135 horsepower continuously as high as 15,000 feet and continue to climb to a service ceiling of 23,000 feet.
The 915 iS will have a redundant dual channel electronic control unit (ECU) produced by Rockwell Collins. The engine has electronic ignition and fuel injection systems, and its operation is optimized through the ECU, which keeps the fuel burn at a minimum.
The 912 and 914 series aircraft engines have become known for efficiency and reliability and have collectively accumulated more than 50 million flight hours. Rotax is targeting a 2,000 hour TBO for the 915 iS.
At 185 lbs, the 915 iS weighs about 35 lbs more than the 912 iS Sport, a weight increase that may be prohibitive for airplanes in the very restrictive LSA category. Rotax 912 engines are, however, already used in larger airplanes such as the Tecnam P2006T Twin. And with the 915 iS, BRP hopes to broaden its customer base.
“It opens the way for larger, heavier aircraft, larger gyrocopters and even small helicopters, or simply more performance for current applications,” Thomas Uhr, vice president of BRP-Powertrain and general manager of BRP-Powertrain GmbH & Co KG said of the Rotax 915 iS.
The Rotax 915 iS is already in the works and the company hopes to bring it to market in the second half of 2017.
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