Open Fan Engine to Be Tested on A380
cfmaeroengines.comLooks a lot like 2022 news:
Jalopnik: Airbus To Test An Open-Fan Turbine Engine On An A380 (2022) https://www.jalopnik.com/airbus-to-test-an-open-fan-turbine-...
CNN: A380 superjumbo to test experimental open fan engine (2022) https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/airbus-cfm-a380-propulsio...
Recent discussion: The next steps for Airbus' big bet on open rotor engines (99 points, 86 comments) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46872238
Thanks for the research. I guess they've been talking about it for a while and will probably continue to do so. Aviation innovation always moves slowly and it's usually a good thing. Which means marketing departments keep writing the same press releases.
I guess we'll see after the tests.. but, it looks a bit dangerous, perhaps. A prop may also save (fuel, not time) but they're rarely a good choice for an airline (unless short-haul and the airport/taxi time counts as the majority of "flight time")
A few issues that come to mind:
1/ If a blade snaps on a normal engine, the metal casing catches it. With an open fan, that broken blade turns into shrapnel flying straight toward the passengers, fuel tanks, etc.
2/ The blades would be huge. You can’t just hang them under the wing of a normal Boeing 737 or Airbus A320.
3/ The metal casing on a normal engine acts like a giant muffler. Open rotors are loud.
4/ Open blades have no protection from bird strikes, hailstorms, or runway debris.
More about Open Fan technology: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48968705