Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) is in the midst of celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the first delivery of its iconic PT6 engine, an engine that has helped to change the face of modern aviation. P&WC is a division of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX).

“The PT6 engine has played an integral role in building P&WC into a global company and a true leader in the design, manufacture and maintenance of aircraft engines,” says Denis Parisien, Vice President, General Aviation, P&WC. “We are very proud of how the PT6 engine has evolved. We’ve injected new technology into every version of the engine, making today’s engines lighter, more powerful and more fuel-efficient than they have ever been.”

To celebrate the engine’s 50th anniversary, P&WC is holding special events at air shows throughout 2013. The engine’s dedicated website,http://www.pt6nation.com/en/, is playing a big part in the celebrations. It features a series of articles on the PT6 engine that focus on its remarkable pedigree and the people behind its success. The site offers articles on the tremendous history behind the PT6 engine and a number of PT6-related interactive initiatives, including a newly-launched mobile application designed to give P&WC’s 10,000 engine operators instant access to a host of services on all makes and models of wireless handheld, tablet or laptop devices. A one-of-a-kind video has also been produced and is available on YouTube.

Overall, the company’s PT6 Nation social media channels (PT6Nation.com, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube) are now more popular than ever, with over 50,000 fans and followers worldwide. P&WC will be attending the upcoming EAA AirVenture (EAA) aviation and annual membership convention in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, held from July 29 to August 4. The P&WC booth (# 2132, Hangar B) will be staffed by engine and aftermarket experts to answer questions from customers and EAA participants. Engines on display will include the PT6A-41 and PT6A-65. Additionally, as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations, 10 PT6-powered aircraft will be displayed in the heart of EAA Conoco Phillips Plaza, during PT6 Engine Celebration Day on Wednesday, July 31.

About the PT6 Engine

• With over 52,000 engines produced and 130 different applications, the PT6 engine fleet has racked up an astounding 390 million hours of flight, the equivalent of more than 250,000 return trips to the moon.
• PT6 engines can be found on aircraft all over the world carrying out a wide range of vital missions, from relief work to scheduled passenger service, cargo transport to VIP travel, agricultural application to military pilot training, firefighting to search and rescue.
• The PT6A’s low in-flight shutdown rate, which has been consistently at least three times lower than today’s turbine industry standard of 10 events per million hours, accelerated the development of single-engine turboprop aircraft in the 1980s and 1990s. This is undoubtedly one of the PT6A’s most impressive legacies.
• Compared to the first 450 shaft horsepower PT6A model introduced in 1963, today’s PT6 engine family is up to four times more powerful, with a 40 percent better power-to-weight ratio and up to a 20 percent lower specific fuel consumption.
• The latest version of our iconic engine is the PT6A-140, the first variant of next-generation products that produces 1,075 SHP thermal for significantly improved climb, cruise and take-off performance in hot and high operation. This is the most powerful PT6A engine in its class and it provides the best power-to-weight ratio in its class.

About Pratt & Whitney Canada

Founded in 1928, and a global leader in aerospace, P&WC is shaping the future of aviation with dependable, high-technology engines. Based in Longueuil, Quebec (Canada), P&WC is a wholly owned subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation (UTC). UTC is a diversified company that provides a broad range of high-technology products and services to the global aerospace and building systems industries.