GE Aerospace has completed testing a megawatt-class hybrid-electric turboprop engine, paving the way for flight tests in the coming months.
The successful test represents the first time a fully integrated version of the hybrid-electric propulsion system has been run.
To be used in large turboprop aircraft, such as the type used for regional flights that carry up to 90 people, hybrid-electric engines need to be capable of megawatt-power levels. For example, the P&W100 turboprop engine family, that is used by aircraft such as the ATR 42/ATR 72, is available in power outputs ranging from 1.3MW to 3.7MW.
The test campaign at GE Aerospace’s Peebles site in Ohio simulated different flight phases such as taxi, take-off, climb and cruise, during which the electric powertrain helped successfully power the propeller and generated power to the battery. The powertrain comprises motor/generators, power converters and inverters and controllers developed by GE Aerospace, as well as propellers and gearboxes from GE Aerospace subsidiaries Dowty and Avio Aero respectively.
The propulsion system is powered by a GE CT7 engine and uses batteries provided by BAE Systems. Boeing subsidiary Aurora Flight Sciences supplied the nacelle.
The engine was developed and the test program run as part of NASA’s US$253m Electrified Powertrain Flight Demonstration project, which started in 2021 and finishes later this year.
Arjan Hegeman, vice president for future of flight, GE Aerospace said, “The ground test is a major turning point in our understanding of hybrid-electric powertrains for aviation and a fundamental building block for the future. Step by step, we are proving hybrid-electric engine technology for next-generation commercial aircraft.”
Hybrid-electric systems could also be used in new aircraft engine architectures like open fan, the configuration being developed for the Revolutionary Innovation for Sustainable Engines (RISE) program. RISE is being run by CFM International, a 50-50 joint company between GE Aerospace and Safran Aircraft Engines.
In December 2025, GE engineers at Peebles successfully tested a Passport turbofan engine integrated into a hybrid-electric system, a setup that could be used in a narrowbody airliner. The test, which was part of the NASA HyTEC (Hybrid Thermally Efficient Core) project, extracted from and injected power into the Passport engine during testing.
