Clean Aviation SWITCH Hybrid-Electric Engine Testing

under construction

Collins Aerospace has started testing electric motor drive systems for the European Union’s Clean Aviation SWITCH project at its facility in Rockford, Illinois. The project involves a hybrid-electric powertrain subsystem including motor generators, controllers, and power distribution systems. The SWITCH project aims to demonstrate hybrid-electric technologies to optimize engine efficiency for future short- and medium-range aircraft. Key subsystems, including two megawatt-class motor generators, will be integrated into a hybrid-electric Pratt & Whitney GTF engine demonstrator in the next testing phase. The powertrain components are developed across Europe, with Collins Aerospace designing and producing megawatt-class electric motors and controllers in Solihull, UK, power distribution components designed in Nördlingen, Germany, and GKN Aerospace developing the high voltage electrical wiring interconnection system in Papendrecht, Netherlands. The project is a collaborative effort involving MTU Aero Engines AG, Pratt & Whitney, Collins Aerospace, GKN Aerospace, Airbus, and several European research institutions, funded by the European Union.