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49 Unmanned Systems Technology | Summer 2015 CAD image of the AE300 An AE300 installed This twin-engined aircraft produced by the Diamond Group uses AE300s The AE300 Certified by all major national aviation authorities, the AE300 has logged up over 500,000 hours’ flight time. A major use of it is in the Diamond DA42NG, a propeller-driven four-seater aircraft with twin engines. Unmanned systems developer Aurora Flight Sciences, in the US, has developed an optionally piloted version of this plane. Aurora has also developed its own UAV platform, called Orion, which uses twin AE300 engines and this holds a flight endurance record of 83 hours. The AE300 is based on a 2.0 litre I4 turbodiesel that has been in service in automotive applications since the nineties. Lietz notes that this proven track record is significant in terms of the engine’s dependability, as is its use of a rugged cast-iron block. The AE300 will run on regular diesel fuel as well as accepting all types of kerosene-based jet fuel. The use of kerosene-based fuel gives an advantage over spark-ignition aero engines running on avgas as it offers inherently better fuel efficiency – Lietz says there is more The AE300 will run on regular diesel as well as all types of kerosene-based jet fuel, the latter offering better fuel efficiency than avgas