More than a decade ago, Teledyne Continental bought a fully formed full authority digital engine control system from a startup called Aerosance. It made perfect sense, since at the time, many in the engine business thought the market was overdue for dumping magnetos in favor of electronics, which cars have had since the 1970s. The many turned out to be wrong. TCM got hardly any traction with its FADEC system, even though those who have flown it, installed it and own it say it should have succeeded. Why it did not seems to be due to a combination of bad timing, a hidebound market and conservative OEMs. But with fuel prices rising and 100LL threatened, is there resurgent interest in electronic ignition in general and TCMs PowerLink specifically? It appears so.
Thank Toyota
Although most in the industry don’t know it, the inspiration for TCMs PowerLink system may owe at least some of its inspiration to Toyota. In the mid-1990s, Toyota engaged a Hamilton Standard group to develop one of its Lexus engine models as an aircraft engine. The project was carried through to completion, was certified and actually flew test flights in a Twin Cessna. Toyota appar-ently dropped or at least shelved the project and it never came out of the ground. But the Hamilton Standard group, led by Steve Smith, carried on with piston-engine research, eventually forming Aerosance, the company that TCM bought to acquire the technology.
What became the PowerLink system was and is an automotive approach to aircraft engine management. It has variable timed spark based on stored performance mapping and closed feedback loops and it controls fuel through electrically activated injectors that precisely meter pulse width. Unlike diesels or some automotive gasoline engines, it doesnt have a common-rail fuel system, but uses an adaptation of Continentals familiar top-mounted spider distribution.
The system was intended to mature in a way to eventually include an electronically controlled prop governor and turbo controller, but it hasnt gotten that far yet. It is, nonetheless, a single-lever system and owners who have operated it say this is one of its principle advantages. The other is more consistent leaning and better thermal control of the engine, which Continental argued would improve engine durability. But in our view, there’s too little operational history to prove that point.
Everyone Tried It
To their credit, most of the OEMs weve asked about the PowerLink system confirm that they tried it. Cirrus did, Cessna did and so did Mooney and Diamond. We were told by a Bonanza owner that Beechcraft planned to offer the system this year as an option, but Hawker Beechcraft declined comment one way or another.
Of all the OEMs Continental pitched the system to, only one picked it up: Liberty Aerospace. It now has about 150 PowerLink systems flying throughout the world in its XL2 trainer. Well discuss Libertys experiences later, but first, why didnt the other OEMs bite?
Diamond was actually in the best position to adopt PowerLink because one its C1 trainers was used by Continental as a testbed for the IOF-240. In fact, Continental still has that aircraft flying.