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| Walter turbines After speaking with everybody I could find who had any knowledge about this Czech engine, here’s what I learned: Walter engines, which were once used on commuter airliners, were removed and set aside once they’d met and exceeded their TBO (Time Before Overhaul), which is around 1500 hours when in commercial service. Walters have reportedly been extremely reliable for an additional 1500 hours of use before overhaul is indicated. There’s also the fact that Walter engines are never operated at full power and are rated for far greater horsepower than what they’re normally run at. Besides that, turbine engines are so simple, there isn’t much that can go wrong with them. If they’re operated properly, with careful monitoring of power rates and never allowed to overheat, they should produce full power for a substantial amount of time. However, a person who installs one of these engines in his aircraft should be aware that they arrive from the Czech Republic without any documents or logs showing the amount or type of usage. Nothing comes with a Walter except for all the parts needed for installation. When they arrive in shipping cans from the Czech Republic, they’re checked by the importer to be sure they’re complete. Once installed in an aircraft, each Walter engine is given an extensive test run to assess and confirm its soundness and to assess its level of performance. When I brought up the fact that the Walter engine appeared to be an almost direct copy of the Pratt & Whitney PT6, I was told that the only difference |
between the two is that, while one uses individual injection jets, the other uses
a distribution ring. I was also reminded that engines from both companies have earned
enviable safety records. If you’re looking for a certified engine, the Walter 601E is
the one for you. The Walter 601D, while also an excellent engine, is not certified. If you
want to install a Walter engine in your homebuilt, I suggest you buy the one you can best
afford. When I asked whether replacement parts were available for Walter engines, I was told that some are available, but if your engine should fail or stop producing the advertised amount of power, the best thing to do is to ship the engine back overseas where, for $20,000, it will be returned to you after receiving a complete overhaul. With this in mind, you can figure that if you originally paid $45,000 for a Walter engine, installed it in your aircraft, operated it for 1500 hours and then paid $20,000 for a complete factory overhaul, you would end up with a good, |
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overhauled engine and still be way ahead of the game. I’ve heard that an increasing number of homebuilders have been installing Walter turbine engines in their aircraft, and I’ve never known about any of these builders having problems with them. So I’ll do an additional amount of research about the Walter turbine and write another report about this interesting, affordable engine. Look for the report in a future issue. |
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