Hot Section: hartzell propeller gets stc for turbine engine composite prop

Hartzell Propeller has received an FAA type certificate for its new advanced-composite ASC-II four-blade propeller. It is the company’s first
ASC-II propeller developed for ­turboprop aircraft.

Hartzell developed its first composite blade in 1978 principally out of aramid fiber. According to the company, it was the first composite propeller ever certified by the FAA.

“We conducted a significant general aviation market analysis and found that the demand was there for a high-performance, lower-horsepower-compatible composite propeller,” said Mike Disbrow, Hartzell’s senior v-p of marketing and customer services. The company then de­veloped a second-generation blade de­sign it calls the ASC-II.

Hartzell’s new four-blade, 93-inch-diameter ASC-II advanced composite propeller features a lightweight aluminum hub that Disbrow said will weigh 30 pounds less than an equivalent metal-blade propeller.

The year-long testing program included endurance, fatigue, lightning strike, bird strike and propeller vibration testing. According to the company, the positive test results garnered FAA certification for an unlimited fatigue life.