Boeing selects Safran PPS®5000 electric thruster

Boeing selects Safran PPS®5000 electric thruster for use on a commercial satellite

June 27, 2017, Vernon (Eure)

Safran Aircraft Engines has been selected by Boeing to provide an electric propulsion subsystem to support orbit-raising on a commercial satellite program.

This order represents two world firsts:

The first use of a cluster of three plasma thrusters (Hall Effect), operating simultaneously, to perform orbital transfer duties.
The first deployment of a plasma thruster developing 5 kW of power – 10% more than current models used on telecommunications satellites.

Boeing is a pioneer in the use of electric propulsion systems on satellites. This order for PPS®5000 thrusters marks Boeing’s first use of Hall Effect thrusters for special missions/applications.

Safran Aircraft Engines will supply the PPS®5000, along with the power processing unit (PPU), and will take technical responsibility for the interfaces. “We are honored to start a great collaboration with a key actor of the commercial satellites industry, said Didier Desnoyer, Vice President of Safran Aircraft Engines’ Military Engines and Space Electric Propulsion division. “It also reflects our customers’ confidence in our capability to introduce into the market a new generation of world-class plasma thrusters”.

The first PPS® 5000 will be delivered in 2018 for a satellite launch planned in 2019.

The order announced today is the division’s second contract from a U.S.-based company. Rated at 5 kW of power, the PPS®5000 is being developed within the scope of the All-Electric Satellite plan, part of the New French Industry program, in collaboration with the French space agency CNES.

Safran is an international high-technology group and tier-1 supplier of systems and equipment in the Aerospace and Defense markets. Operating worldwide, Safran has nearly 58,000 employees and generated sales of 15.8 billion euros in 2016. Safran is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange, and its share is part of the CAC 40 and Euro Stoxx 50 indices

Safran Aircraft Engines designs, produces, sells, alone or in partnership, commercial and military aircraft engines offering world-class performance, reliability and environmental-friendliness. Through CFM International*, Safran Aircraft Engines is the world’s leading supplier of engines for short and medium-haul commercial jets. Safran Aircraft Engines calls on an array of expertise unrivaled in Europe to design, develop and produce a range of plasma thrusters and propulsion systems offering world-class performance.

*CFM is a 50/50 joint company between Safran Aircraft Engines and GE

For more information: www.safran-aircraft-engines.com