[BITList] RR Engine for A-380

[HUGH]

John,

The marinised version is right at the bottom, as you say.  I see no reason
whatever why a thing of such complexity should be allowed on a ship.  An
aristocrat once said of a Mozart piece, that it had too many notes - these
engines have too many bits, for my taste at least.  In purely practical
terms one can drive a generator via a stepdown gearbox, but so can a simple
diesel without a gearbox.  I draw a parallel with motor bikes - the Royal
Enfield Model G is still made in India, and with rear suspension into the
bargain.  Two spanners and a screwdriver and any repair can be done by the
roadside.  My son-in-law favours enormous flashy Japanese machines with a
ton of chrome aboard and no user serviceable parts.  They do exactly the
same job as the Enfield.  As for direct drive - there is no mention anywhere
of RPM, and the thrust developed is irrelevant to anyone considering this
machine for a marine direct drive propulsion engine.  I'd need to see
full details of the marinised version before giving a final verdict.

While with BI I heard about the soft drink dispensers installed on one BI
passenger vessel.  The suitability for marine use was never considered until
the machines started to give free drinks when the ship went astern.

Hugh.