Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC), a business unit of Pratt & Whitney, has achieved one billion flying hours since the formation of the company nearly 100 years ago, in 1928. P&WC engines power missions across a diverse portfolio, including business aviation, general aviation, regional aviation, helicopter aviation and APUs. Over this time, more than 110,000 engines have been produced, with more than 66,000 currently in service powering its more than 16,000 customers.

“Aviation has the power to change the world. Our engines power aircraft that benefit millions of people every day,” says company president Maria Della Posta. “Every second, a P&WC-powered aircraft takes off or lands somewhere on the planet, whether they're driving commerce, reuniting families or powering humanitarian missions, emergency medical services or search and rescue missions. Achieving one billion flying hours is made possible by the dedicated team at Pratt & Whitney Canada along with our customers, suppliers and the extended P&WC community. We look forward to celebrating this achievement with them this year.”

The PT6 engine family is celebrating 60 years of excellence and innovation. It has been embraced by fixed-wing and helicopter airframers around the world. With more than 64,000 PT6 engines produced since its introduction in 1963, it powers at least 155 different aviation applications. The PT6 is unmatched in engine performance, reliability and dispatch availability, having reached 500,000 million flying hours.

“Our PT6 engine remains at the forefront of the aviation landscape, bringing breakthrough achievements in performance, control systems and data intelligence,” adds Della Posta. “Today's PT6 is up to four times more powerful, has a 50 percent better power-to-weight ratio and up to 20 percent better specific fuel consumption compared to the original engine. Each new model is developed and designed with a specific mission, platform and customer in mind, while pursuing a reduced environmental footprint.”

The PT6 engine's relentless technological evolution has never been more apparent than in recent years. The latest engine family, the PT6 E-Series, is the first with a dual-channel integrated electronic propeller and engine control system in general aviation.

The PT6 is also the only turboprop engine in the world to be approved for single-engine instrument flight rules (SEIFR) in commercial passenger flights in Europe, North America, New Zealand and Australia.