NOVOSIBIRSK, January 23. /TASS/. An aircraft engine fully made of aluminum has been developed at the Novosibirsk State Technical University. This is the first engine of this kind in the world, the Novosibirsk Region Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation Policy said on Tuesday.

"The world’s first aircraft engine fully made of aluminum has been developed by designers of the basic Novosibirsk State Technical University. Even the parts exposed to the highest loads are made of aluminum, namely, the crankshaft, cylinder barrels and the flywheel," the ministry said in a statement.

According to the developers, all engine parts were previously made of steel. The developers have been able to replace them with aluminum thanks to special technology, which helps apply a thin layer of aluminum oxide characterized by high hardness to aluminum parts.

As a result, the new engine has become 50 kg lighter than its predecessor and weighs about 200 kg. Its power has increased by 10% while fuel consumption has been reduced by 15% As the University’s press office said, the new engine uses regular fuel.

The new engine can be mounted on Yak-52 two-seat planes whose old engines have used up their potential. The engine’s ground trials on January 19 were successful and the developers will now test the engine’s stated potential of 2,000 hours and carry out its flight tests.