Continental Motors Group is changing its name to Continental Aerospace Technologies as part of a global rebranding program.
“After conducting studies, including customer and team member focus groups from all continents, Continental is modernizing its name and logo to align its vision to continuously innovate to be the first choice in general aviation power,” company officials said in a prepared release.
“Continental Aerospace Technologies is evolving rapidly,” said Christopher Kuehn, VP of Sales, Marketing, and Customer Support. “We are adding more products to our portfolio, and covering all the needs of general aviation with both gasoline and Jet-A fuel engines. While we continue to innovate and bring new technologies to the market, we are also working to enhance our service, support, and manufacturing. This is one of the key components to offer superior performance to our customers. Bringing our brand into the 21st century is only the first step in 2019.”
Founded in 1905, Continental is recognized as a forerunner of engine manufacturing for general aviation. Over the years, Continental introduced turbo-charging, fuel injection, balanced fuel injectors, liquid cooling, Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC), and many other innovations for general aviation engines, company officials note.
Today, Continental offers three families of piston engines, both certified and experimental, allowing for continued operations of legacy and current production airframes:
Continental Certified Legacy AvGas Line is a family of avgas burning engines ranging from 90 to 375 hp for airframes such as Cessna 152/C170/C172/C182/C206/C207/TTX, Columbia 300/400 series, Mooney 20R, Acclaim, Piper Malibu/PA-28, Arrow Turbo, Seneca, Beechcraft Bonanza/Baron, and Cirrus SR20/SR22/SR22T.
TITAN Experimental Engine Line for airframes such as the Van’s kits, Zenith, Just Aircraft, TopCub, and other more.
Jet-A Fueled Engine Line includes seven different engines, offering a power output of 135 to 300 hp for airframes including Piper Aircraft, Robin Aircraft, and Glasair. Retrofit solutions are also available for popular airframes such as the Cessna C172 Skyhawk, Piper PA-281 and Diamond DA-40/-42.
Maybe with China now owning Continental Motors, they will find a way to combine with a high volume engine supplier and thereby be able to modernize these old engines by finally upgrading them to FADEC. Remember that the President of Avic – Mr. Yu Yimin has said the real reason they bought Continental was to provide engines to the newly created Chinese aviation market. It wouldn’t surprise me to see all the new technology to go into their new domestic market while only allowing the obsolete legacy iron to be sold back here in the States.
So glad that Continental is not just surviving but thriving. Sadly “Powerful as the Nation”, does not mean much today, at least the current owners are investing in the U.S. and not just selling off the pieces. If not for the current owner, AVIC, a U.S. corporate raider concerned only with making the numbers this quarter would likely have already shut them down and sold the pieces.