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Here is the latest information, as best I understand it.  The company
has a web site, www.engineair.net that you should visit to get the
company-direct information.

The development of the gearbox and the work required to put it into
production took longer and cost a lot more than anticipated.  The
original prototype gearbox has collected about 750 hours, and bugs
identified along the way were addressed and modifications made during
the test period.  It was subsequently shipped to a impatient customer
and details of its operation thereafter were,  unfortunately, not
documented or at least not reported to the company.

Several  more "second generation" prototype gearboxes with many
improvements were subsequently shipped.  One was installed in Jim Rahm's
Lancair IV which won the  Kitty Hawk to Oshkosh race earlier this year.
More testing will no doubt result in further refinements, but based on
experience with the "second generation" prototypes, the design has been
released for initial production.  The first production unit from the
factory was shipped several weeks ago.   Production units will start in
the field with relatively short inspection intervals that will be
extended as experience is gained, as with any new product.

A lot of the delay occurred during the transition from one-at-a-time
machining working from the original drawings to high rate parts
production in aerospace-qualified shops that had much greater
documentation needs.  This required extensive revisions and upgrades of
documentation and transfer of a lot of know-how from designer to
production personnel. Also, the installation and debugging of the custom
dynamometer at the factory in Aiken, South Carolina also took a lot
longer than expected, but those problems have also been overcome.  The
dyno facility is capable of comprehensively testing the engine and
gearbox combination with simulated (and controllable) thrust loads being
applied to the gearbox thrust bearing.  Additionally, a lot of new
production and assembly tooling had to be designed and constructed and a
lot of software for the complex machining processes had to be developed
and proven as well.

The production of gearboxes is now accelerating to catch up with the
current inventory of engines which have already been assembled in
anticipation of receiving gearboxes.  New designs and new suppliers have
been qualified for other pieces including exhaust heat shields, exhaust
manifolds and other parts.  The company is presently working on the
backlog of orders and the last of these units in backlog should be
shipped sometime this spring.  Various EngineAir customers are hustling
to get their power plants installed, shaken down, and test restrictions
flown off with a goal of coming to Sun and Fun.  With luck several
aircraft should be completed between now and then.

With a growing fleet of units operating, the operational experience
necessary to uncover and then address any remaining bugs should be more
quickly gained.  Murphy says that there are always bugs lurking, even in
the most mature hardware, so the search will probably continue without
end.  But the tough part associated with starting up the production line
is drawing to a conclusion.

 For more information and photos of the equipment, test facilities,
factory building, etc. see www.engineair.net


 Fred Moreno

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