Story ID: 373
Rolls-Royce Launches Trent 1000 Durability Enhancements
By: Charles Alcock
Caption: Manufacturer says maintenance intervals could more than double
Word Count: 302
Rolls-Royce says it is more than doubling scheduled maintenance intervals for Trent 1000 engines with the launch of a pair of durability enhancement packages. On Thursday, the manufacturer announced that the upgrade is now available for retrofit at maintenance centers worldwide, having been incorporated into new-build turbofans for Boeing’s 787 widebody airliners since January.
The improvements have been a major undertaking for Rolls-Royce, which has been under pressure from multiple Dreamliner operators that have faced service interruptions, including British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. The specific maintenance intervals vary significantly according to the flying profile of each operator.
According to Rolls-Royce, the upgraded components used to extend time-on-wing have been used since 2022 on the Trent 7000 engine (which powers the Airbus A330neo) and, in some cases, are tripling maintenance intervals. The UK-based group is investing £1 billion ($1.3 billion) in the durability enhancement program, which also applies to the Trent XWB-84 and the XWB-97 engines for the A350 aircraft. Earlier this year, it said it aims to double its time-on-wing targets from an average 40% increase across fleets to 80% by 2027.
The first phase of the program includes a 40% increase in cooling for the Trent 1000’s new high-pressure turbine blades. It also covers updates to the combustion system, fuel spray nozzles, and engine electronic controller software.
Phase two of the package is now being tested at Rolls-Royce’s facility in Derby, UK, and is expected to result in a further 30% improvement in time-on-wing for Trent 1000 when it starts entering service from early 2026. It covers advanced coating on combustor tiles to prevent damage in “non-benign environments,” as well as cooling and coating changes to high-pressure nozzle guide vanes, weight reduction and coating improvements to high-pressure blades, and a redesigned combustor-to-turbine interface based on the latest Trent XWB-84 EP engine.