Trent 500
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Technical Specifications
- Thrust
- 267,0 kN (60000 lbf)
- Bypass Ratio
- 8,5:1
- Fan Diameter
- 2,474 m
- Pressure Ratio
- 40,0:1
- SFC
- 0,3100 lb/lbf·h
- Dry Weight
- 5252 kg
- Length
- 3,912 m
- First Run
- 1999
- In Service
- 2002
Overview
The Rolls-Royce Trent 500 is a member of the Trent engine family developed exclusively for the Airbus A340-500 and A340-600 quad-engine widebody aircraft. With only around 200 engines produced, it is among the rarest Trent variants, a reflection of the limited commercial success of the A340-500/-600 in a market that increasingly favoured twin-engine long-haul operations enabled by ETOPS regulations.
The Trent 500 shares the fan diameter of the Trent 700 but uses a higher bypass ratio of 8.5:1 and a higher overall pressure ratio of 40:1, making it a more advanced core than its A330-engined sibling. The engine was the sole powerplant offered on the A340-500/-600, giving Rolls-Royce a monopoly position on a programme that nonetheless faced challenging market conditions from the outset.
Technical Specifications
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Thrust (max) | 267 kN / 60,000 lbf |
| Bypass ratio | 8.5:1 |
| Fan diameter | 2.474 m (97.4 in) |
| Overall pressure ratio | 40:1 |
| Dry weight | 5,252 kg |
| Length | 3.912 m |
| SFC (cruise) | 0.3100 lb/(lbf·h) |
| First run | 1999 |
| In service | 2002 |
Variants
- Trent 553: Standard production variant at 53,000 lbf for the A340-500.
- Trent 556: Higher-thrust variant at 56,000 lbf for the A340-600, accommodating the greater maximum take-off weight of the stretched fuselage.
Aircraft Applications
- Airbus A340-600 — primary application
Development History
The Trent 500 was launched in 1996 to power the stretched A340-500 and -600 variants that Airbus was developing as ultra-long-range competitors to the Boeing 747. The engine first ran in 1999 and entered service with Virgin Atlantic Airways in 2002. The A340-500/-600 programme never achieved the commercial volumes that would have justified a second engine option, leaving Rolls-Royce as the sole supplier throughout the type's production life. As airlines retired ageing A340s in favour of more fuel-efficient twins such as the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350, demand for Trent 500 maintenance diminished. Airbus ended A340-600 production in 2011, making the Trent 500 the last quad-engine application in the Trent lineage.