Readytotaxi From United Kingdom, joined Dec 2006, 2596 posts, RR: 3 Posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 4 days 4 hours ago) and read 4256 times:
Is it possible to tell which engine maker is fitted to an aircraft just by listening?
A friend asked me and I could not say for sure, take a 747 for example, if you stood at the end of the runway as it took off could you tell by the sound if it were Rolls Royce or PW or GE,do they have a different tone or pitch?
you don't get a second chance to make a first impression!
EXAAUADL From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 3, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 4 days 4 hours ago) and read 4233 times:
I can tell an A320 family. They have a very distinct sound
Also the old JT-9Ds on the Dc-9 are very distinct. Even though 737-200s also had them, I think the distance from the ground results in a different sound. I love taxing out on an old NW DC-9. Reminds me of the 1970s.
Also RR darts were very distinct, so I could tell a F27 versus anotehr type of prop pretty easily.
AA737-823 From United States of America, joined Mar 2000, 5341 posts, RR: 11 Reply 5, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 4 days 2 hours ago) and read 4103 times:
Quoting EXAAUADL (Reply 3): Also the old JT-9Ds on the Dc-9 are very distinct
Haha, JT-9's on a DC-9 woudl rip that plane apart. Funny mental picture, though.
I think you mean JT-8's.
Having worked on a ramp that has anywhere from 50-100 747s coming in daily (during peak summer cargo hauling), I can now tell a Pratt from the General from a Roller.
The Pratt howls at idle power.
The GE whines, and is PARTICULARLY unpleasant on an older 747-200 with CF-6-50s.
The Rolls buzzes. Also a very loud engine, from the front, at idle power.
Honestly, the most pleasant engines to be within 500 feet of are the Pratts.
AirTranTUS From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 6, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 4 days 1 hour ago) and read 4013 times:
Quoting TheSonntag (Reply 2): For the A320 series it is pretty easy to distinguish the CFM from the IAE. The CFM56 has a certain roar, it sounds completely different from the IAE.
Really? In my experience both the IAE and CFM sound the same, which makes it easy for me to identify an A320 family member.
Sketty222 From United Kingdom, joined Mar 2006, 1772 posts, RR: 4 Reply 7, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 4 days 1 hour ago) and read 3997 times:
I can tell the difference when a RR powred aircraft is flying over my house( I live close to an airport). They're very distinctive, especially on the 757's
AA61Hvy From United States of America, joined Nov 1999, 13975 posts, RR: 59 Reply 8, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 4 days ago) and read 3974 times:
I live real close to LAX, I see the planes take off all day every day. I am getting to the point where I can hear the engines and know the plane (sometimes the airline). The only thing that gets me is the 737's.. They are tough to distinguish (minus the -200).
AA737-823 From United States of America, joined Mar 2000, 5341 posts, RR: 11 Reply 9, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 12 hours ago) and read 3740 times:
Quoting AirTranTUS (Reply 6): Really? In my experience both the IAE and CFM sound the same, which makes it easy for me to identify an A320 family member.
The CFM on the A320 sounds similar to the CFM on the 737 sounds similar to the CFM on the A340.
The IAE has been described by mechanic friends of mine as sounding, "Like it's got propellers stuck in there somewhere, spinning ninety-to-nothing."
I'll just leave his description alone, I couldn't do any better!!!
AirTranTUS From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 10, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 12 hours ago) and read 3704 times:
Quoting AA737-823 (Reply 9): The CFM on the A320 sounds similar to the CFM on the 737 sounds similar to the CFM on the A340.
The IAE has been described by mechanic friends of mine as sounding, "Like it's got propellers stuck in there somewhere, spinning ninety-to-nothing."
To me all A320 engines have that high-pitched whine to them. I hear it on F9 A318's, NW A319's & 20's, and B6 A320's. I don't hear that whine on the 737.
Maverick623 From United States of America, joined Nov 2006, 4744 posts, RR: 6 Reply 11, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 11 hours ago) and read 3636 times:
Quoting AirTranTUS (Reply 6): Really? In my experience both the IAE and CFM sound the same,
The CFM has a distinct roar to it. I can always tell the East birds from the Westies.
Beertrucker From United States of America, joined Dec 2005, 400 posts, RR: 0 Reply 12, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 7 hours ago) and read 3315 times:
I think my all time favorite plane to hear and always knew what it was. Was the good old 727. You always knew when one of them was around taxiing.
DocLightning From United States of America, joined Nov 2005, 16825 posts, RR: 57 Reply 13, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 7 hours ago) and read 3281 times:
I can't tell engine types, but I can tell you (sometimes) what kind of plane just flew over without looking up.
For example, the A320 with flaps out on approach makes an odd whistling/howling sound. A 747 makes a sound that no other aircraft can ever or will ever make. And a NW DC9 departing DTW sounds like a tornado accidentally walked into you.
Beertrucker From United States of America, joined Dec 2005, 400 posts, RR: 0 Reply 14, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 7 hours ago) and read 3123 times:
Quoting TheSonntag (Reply 2): For the A320 series it is pretty easy to distinguish the CFM from the IAE. The CFM56 has a certain roar, it sounds completely different from the IAE.
Ok for those talking about the A320 family sounds alike here you go and you be the judge. I did some hunting for ya.
Beertrucker From United States of America, joined Dec 2005, 400 posts, RR: 0 Reply 15, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 7 hours ago) and read 3123 times:
Ok here is one for the B757 for those of you who talked about that.
SQ325 From Germany, joined Jul 2001, 1437 posts, RR: 8 Reply 16, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 6 hours ago) and read 2981 times:
On ground at taxi speed you can easily hear the Fokker70/100 and the Avro RJs!
Of course the Tristar was very easy to detect on the ground.
For all those sound lovers!
Albird87 From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 17, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 6 hours ago) and read 2905 times:
Quoting AA61Hvy (Reply 8): The only thing that gets me is the 737's.. They are tough to distinguish (minus the -200).
Well thats no suprise as they all use the same engine make! I would like to see a person be able to tell the difference between all the NGs and then between the classics!
Zkpilot From New Zealand, joined Mar 2006, 4739 posts, RR: 10 Reply 19, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 6 hours ago) and read 2771 times:
I find if you are spending a lot of time around aircraft (particularly on the tarmac/ramp) then you can tell the difference when they are taxiing. There are obvious differences on approach/takeoff between different types of aircraft, but to tell the difference between different engines on the same aircraft type is pretty damn difficult.
DeltaAVL From United States of America, joined Mar 2007, 1893 posts, RR: 7 Reply 20, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 3 days 4 hours ago) and read 2417 times:
Quoting EXAAUADL (Reply 3): I can tell an A320 family. They have a very distinct sound
Well actually, as TheSonntag said, the different engines on 320s sound quite different.
Quoting EXAAUADL (Reply 3): I love taxing out on an old NW DC-9. Reminds me of the 1970s.
Dude, you weren't even alive in the 70s.
"We break, We bend, With hand in hand, When hope is gone, Just hang on." -Guster
ImperialEagle From United States of America, joined Jan 2006, 1230 posts, RR: 14 Reply 21, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 2 days 22 hours ago) and read 1933 times:
Yes, and the difference in the nacelle designs of the similiarly powered DC-8 creates a slightly different sound. The CFM's on the "70"series also VERY distinctive.
I have amazed myself over the years at just how many different aircraft/engines I can identify just by sound, whether piston,propeller-turbine, or jet.
I have never forgotten them either.
I was driving south on I-85 near the Clairmont exit, last year and heard a B-17. I told my friend "wow! I hear a B-17", and sure enough a B-17 flew over us on short final to PDK -----and I heard it above all the expressway noise!
"If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough!"
AA61Hvy From United States of America, joined Nov 1999, 13975 posts, RR: 59 Reply 22, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 2 days 22 hours ago) and read 1926 times:
The A340 to me sounds like a F100 on steroids-so it is fairly easy to distinguish...The big difference (obviously aside from the size etc) is the explosive roar that comes shortly after it passes.
Viscount724 From Switzerland, joined Oct 2006, 21495 posts, RR: 24 Reply 23, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 2 days 21 hours ago) and read 1832 times:
Quoting DocLightning (Reply 13): I can't tell engine types, but I can tell you (sometimes) what kind of plane just flew over without looking up.
It was much easier to identify aircraft by engine sound in the piston and turboprop era. Piston engines especially had much more distinctive engine sounds than today's jets.
Silver1SWA From United States of America, joined Mar 2004, 4538 posts, RR: 28 Reply 24, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 2 days 15 hours ago) and read 1675 times:
Quoting AirTranTUS (Reply 6): Really? In my experience both the IAE and CFM sound the same, which makes it easy for me to identify an A320 family member.
Same here. The CFM on the A320 does sound very similar to the CFM on the 737. The IAE sounds very distinct, especially during taxi.
Quoting Zkpilot (Reply 19): I find if you are spending a lot of time around aircraft (particularly on the tarmac/ramp) then you can tell the difference when they are taxiing. There are obvious differences on approach/takeoff between different types of aircraft, but to tell the difference between different engines on the same aircraft type is pretty damn difficult.
During idle and taxi, differences are very distinct. During takeoff it can be a little more difficult to distinguish types, but they are still noticeable. I can often tell what type and then make an educated guess on what carrier I am hearing before I even turn around to look.
ALL views, opinions expressed are mine ONLY and are NOT representative of those shared by Southwest Airlines Co.
Erhard From Australia, joined Feb 2008, 88 posts, RR: 0 Reply 25, posted (5 years 2 months 3 weeks 2 days 14 hours ago) and read 1647 times:
I can tell the diff between a prop and a jet...does that count?....
seriously though, I get them flying over my place and although they are still quite high, 3-4000', sometimes a bit higher and generally at low thrust, I can tell the diff between CFM's and P&W & RR
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