The BEST TURBOPROP explanation video! By Captain Joe and PRATT & WHITNEY

I’ve always been confused by the turboprop engine. This is far and away the best and most understandable step by step explanation. My eyes have been opened!

OMG, PLEASE make more videos like this of other engines, this was absolutely FANTASTIC!

This was a wonderful explanation of the operation "cycle" of the engine. As an aircraft maintenance engineer, I started my career working on Beechcraft King Air 200, 250, and 350. I've performed many many "HSI's" 10:35 (hot section inspections) on these PT6 engines, where we split the engine at the point between the CT(compressor turbine) and the 1st stage PT(power turbine) .
It's always amazing to see the cutaway of the exact engine you'll be working on, which is generally only located at the manufacturer's approved course-instructing facilities.
Fun fact: Only approximately 30% of the air in a turbine engine is used for combustion. The other ~70% is used for cooling!
Oh, I also managed to salvage an unserviceable gas generator (the inside of which is pictured at 4:04 with the diffuser ducts/vanes) and installed a glass top on it to serve as a coffee table :)

I am electrical Engineer, but we had an Mechanical Engineering subject in our first semester and Gas Turbine/ Generator was a huge part of that course, I wish i had this kind of video that time.excellent explanation thanks to you and also thank PW for such a nice cross sectional model of the PT6

I have over 1,000 hours with the PT-6 (King Air and Twin Otter). This is the best explanation of the engine I have ever seen and heard.

I watch a lot of engineering explanation videos and this was honestly one of the most clear and concise I've ever seen.
I'm often left with questions I go off and research, but there is no need after this one.
Well done, great video Joe 👏

As a P&WC employee this engine is a marvel on its own I am honored to be part of this company! This video is by far the best explanation of how our PT6 works! Fantastic, clean, and concise! Captain' :)

I've been through turbine schools and have to say that this presentation is nothing short of excellent! You hit every point and gave numbers. Top shelf!

Great video Joe! The PT6 is make exclusively by Pratt and Whitney's Canadian division (also where I work!) and has been a cornerstone of our company's success for decades.

Currently studying ATPL 021/powerplant , this is very helpful and straightforward, thanks 😊

Whoever came up with the idea about the separation between Gas Generator and Power Section blew my mind that the shaft is not connected from each other. Your explanation about the engine was very clear and easy to understand. Thanks for the video!

Well done! From my limited understanding, the E-Series engines are FADEC, which simplifies startup (preventing hot/hung starts) and can be used with autothrottles to greatly reduce pilot workflow.

as a curiosity, I will add that the parts for the construction of this engine are manufactured in a branch of the Pratt and Whitney plant in Poland in the city of Kalisz. in Kalisz we also have the same model of this engine. thank you for a very nice episode. Regards, Przemek

I love flying on turboprop aircraft! My favourite is the Dash 8-400/Q400. The Dash 8-400 also sounds so cool.

What an incredibly well-made video. Thank you so much Captain Joe for partnering with P&W to bring us this amazing step-by-step explanation, and for bringing your experience and knowledge to it to make it feel a bit more real and not just purely technical. You're a teacher, an entertainer (referring to your "windmill" :D) and you're a stand-up dude. Fly safe!

By far, the clearest and most lucid video on Turboprop explains everything with great diagrams and models. Well-done

As a Mechanical Engineer with a specialisation in Internal Combustion Engines and Turbomachinery, I would like to highlight that, up to now, this is one of the best and clearest explanations I have personally come across with (and I have watched quite many due to my passion with regards to this specific topic).
Very well done Captain, and please keep on sharing contents of this quality.

This was absolutely eye-opening! Fantastic video! I had no idea that this engine is used in so many aircraft. This is straight-forward eLearning material. I would love to see more of videos like this. I especially liked the format - filming on site and using voice-overs and additional elements to explain what's going on. Many thanks!

You have answered pretty much all of the questions I had about turboprop engines in a single video that's very easy to understand. Thank you!

Great video and explanation. I used to work on a turboshaft version of the PT6 when in the Military. The PT6T (or for the military, T400-CP-400) powered the 2-blade Huey helicopter (UH-1N).
Same gas generator section layout, a different turbine section, and a combining gearbox that had two of these units combined side by side for a single output shaft to the helicopter.

Damn now this is probably the best explaination you can think of for a turbo prop!

Amazing video Capt. Joe. I particularly was flying the Beechcraft 1900C and D with Pt6A-65B and Pt6A-67D and are turbines with a high efficiency and reliability . Great video !

Captain Joe , I am amazed of how you can precisely explain how the turboprop engine works.
I am an Aerospace Engineering student a third year (senior) and your clarity in giving your explanation has just made it easy to go about the unit of propulsion and Power plants .

Wow! I was a jet engine mechanic in the USAF and worked on the P&W J-57 engine. I was blown away by this video to learn that turboprop blows from back to front! Amazing!

You’re truly giving Real Engineering a run for his money! 👏🏻

The air is NOT accelerated in the compressor, although the duct gets more and more narrow and the Venturi effect should kick in. That's because the blades on the rotors and stators build up a decelaration grid. The speed of the airflow remains more or less the same while passing the compressor. The compressor is not about to accelerate the air, but to compress it. BTW, a centrifugal stage is used when the ratio of blade length and width of the gap between blade and channel would get too big.

i'm an a/c engineer working on PT6 family for the last 33 years, and this is the clearest, simpliest explanation i ever heard. good job Pil!

This was the clearest video I’ve ever seen detailing how a PT6 works, and answered a lot of questions I had. Thank you! I especially like your explanations of the engineering trade offs and decisions in the design, like the counter-rotating shafts.

This is one of your best videos yet, thanks for producing such a thoroughly informative explanation of the turboprop, and well done achieving the holy grail of being simultaneously educational and informative.

Captain Joe, this is by far the best technical explanation I have ever watched on turbo prop engine operation. Great presentation!

I’ve never totally understood how a differential works on a car. I think a video like this one would be my path to enlightenment!
I was able to follow Captain Joe’s calm, measured and elegant presentation on this one.
Wish I had grown up with such teachers.
Thank you.

This was so fantastically good, I actually understood this so much easier than any other explanation! Thank you! I'll be sharing this video for sure!

Great content Joe! -I have always loved Turboprops-ever since I was a kid and we used to see Hercules flying low over the village that I grew up in-and that fascination has never really left me! -it is very interesting to see how at least one version of a Turboprop engine works and, I am very glad to have had the chance to see it! Thank you.🙏👍

By far that is the best explanation that I’ve ever seen on this excellent engine. Keep up the great work!

Simply brilliant, clear, easy to understand and detailed narrative of what is a truly complex process

This is by far the best and most concise explanation of the PT6 I've ever seen! This is evidence that, when you understand something well, you don't need much time to explain it in clear terms :) GREAT WORK!

Thank you sooo much Captain Joe! I’m an Engineer and an Av Geek but really it’s so hard to find such a simple explanation that also covers important questions I always had (like the not continuous shaft!)

Thank you for the demonstration of how the turboprop engine works. Awesome information, and very easy to understand. Thank you for taking the time to film, edit, and post this video.

At 5:40 you ask if this makes sense? After 3 times watching & listening and yes, it makes more sense than previous explanations. I’m blessed twice with your explanation and I have a niece who is an engineer with Pratt & Whitney. 👍🏼👍🏼

It was THE BEST explanation that heard in my whole life about a reaction engine mainly about a PT-6 one. Not all of KRplusrs nor any social channels explain the beginning of all: engine starter. Most of explanations start explaining from the ingested air passing through compressors when the should start to explain from the starter generators which is where everything starts. Congratulations Cap. Joe! ❤

Thank you Captain Joe for this wonderful session on how exactly "turboprop" engines work.

BRILLIANTLY and CALMLY explained. The visuals are splendidly helpful. Thank you !

This was a fun video for me to watch. My son was in the Marine Corps in Aviation Ordinance. He’s now going to school on the GI bill for aircraft maintenance and learning to fly. He’ll be maintaining these engines and flying them as well.

This is hands-down the best explanation for how a Turboprop engine works. I *know* this because I searched KRplus many times in the past and most of the videos were quite lackluster in their explanation. Outstanding work Joe!

Thank you for bringing this up, last used the PT-6A-25A 11 years ago. Further understanding with very good visual representation!

Joe, I will concur with some of the other posts. This is far and away the best explanation of how the PT6 turboprop engine works. If I were still teaching, I play this again and again for my students. Good on you for putting this on the internet.

THIS IS BY FAR THE BEST EVER EXPLANATION OF HOW ANY DAMNED AIRCRAFT ENGINE WORKS!
Man, I've searched everywhere on KRplus for a simplified, step by step, detailed, yet concise explanation of exactly how an aircraft engine works. Tons of videos, a few good ones, mostly absolute trash (which don't go beyond explaining what each blades do and how thrust propels the craft forward etc.).
This is easily the most practically demonstrated (thanks P&W!) easily digestible content on the inner workings of prop engines! And who else could it be? Old Capt. Joe!
Just some small feedback - would love to see the inner workings of how the engine startup procedure works someday i.e. the mechanics and process of what goes on inside when a pilot is cold-starting the engine.

From my early days of putting together thermodynamic turbine engine models at Cal Poly through my time in aerospace, I've never seen a better explanation with your level of detail that the average person can understand. Awesome video Captain Joe - Thanks👍

WOW! You covered so much in 13 minutes, and yet, all understood. Great video, great engine design.

You took me back to my college days studying A&P learning about this wonderful engine, thank you so much

I grew up at airports, flew in many Beechcrafts, but never would have guessed this is how the engines work. Thank you for this Captain Joe.

Little brother. I absolutely love how you are able to explain a complicated situation. In easily understandible terms. Please keep bringing it.

Vielen lieben Dank, Joe für diesen wunderbare Erklärvideo. Wieder grandios erklärt! Herzlichen Dank.

That was an excellent and easy to follow explanation of how the engine works for us non-engineering types. Thank you!

Impecable explanation. It's impressive how the flow of gases and reduction gearboxes lead to such amount of HP and torque. Thank you mate.

Very interesting. I’ve never paid much attention to how a turboprop works and watched this video to find out. It was really cool to learn not just how they generally work but at the same time, how the pt6 series are such innovative versions. Lots of homework went into these beauties.

Wow! what a truly eye-opening video. A fantastic explanation of an iconic engine. It's brilliant being able to see the working components inside the engine casing. jet engines get all the "fame" but these beauties are good reliable work horses. Thanks Captain Joe, I'm sure you enjoyed your day off too.

Thanks for bringing back many good memories. I was a Field Rep for P&W starting in 1965 and had my first assignment covering corporate and 3rd Level airlines operating the King Air out of Detroit. I started out with the PT6-6/6A and I stayed with the program up until the -27 was fielded. Worked with companies such as GM, Miles Lab, Upjohn, Marathon Oil but to name a very few. My territory included Mighigan, and N. Ohio. Also did a stint at Rockwell in Colmbus, Ohio when we we trying to get the contract for the OV-10A that had engines turning in opposite directions to counter the prop torque. Was also involved with the installation of an ST6 in a Dana Truck. I loved my time supporting this product and the people I worked with at PWC!!

Hi Captain Joe! Love your vids and short clips. This video was fantastic! Easy to understand with really good visuals. Thank you so much!

Best explanation of a turboprop ever. Brief and easy to understand. Great video!

Excellent! The best explanation of a turboprop engine I’ve ever heard! Very clear and detailed.

What a fantastic video and the explanation is unmatched. Thanks so much for the knowledge and effort into making these kinds of videos!! I am definitely a new fan of your channel all the way from Montenegro!!!I look forward to more of these!!

Probably the best explanation of a turbo prop I’ve seen, that model was really cool and the animated one was real nice as well, nicely done.

I hope to someday be as happy Captain Joe blowing a pinwheel with a hairdryer. Life goals.

You’re really making my life man. I’ve been searching for detailed explanation (for ex how to air compressed) but never find one until now. Thank you so very much. I hope we can have one like this for the helicopter turboshaft also. Thank u Captain ❤❤❤❤

The BEST Ever & Beautifully explained video about PT6 Engine on the internet till now. Even the beginner can understand. Thank you Captain Joe!

Impressive engine explained in laymans terms helping a curious mind on the way to better understanding. Thank you, Captain Joe, wish there was more people like you, more enganged in the matter at hand than the drone of their own voice when explaining stuff. I’ve seen the Pilatus Porter and what it can do. Now I know how the engine works that makes much of the Porters abilities possible.

That was great. I thought I understood this incredible engine before, I didn't.... Now, it makes sense. Thank you CJ for all the insight you give, I've always loved aircraft and so appreciate all the common sense depth you give.

I did NOT know about this reversed flow. That has been really interesting Cap. Kudos.

The engineering genius that goes into these engines just boggles the mind. It’s vids like this is why I love KRplus.

You gave an excellent explanation of a turboprop engine. Thank you!

Thank you very much, Joe. They always sound cool and now we understand the basic working of this innovative engine design-

By far the BEST example and explanation I’ve seen. Thank you.

Oh this is just what I needed! My AGK ATPL is coming up in a few weeks. Thank you & keep up the great content as always! 👏🏼

0:59 Call me immature, but I cannot help but laugh every time I hear that simplification.

Love this video. One of the best explanations of the PT-6 ever.

You have cleared up the inlet confusion I was experiencing. It wasnt by any means obvious where the inlet was situated. Thank you. They are an excellent and fuel-efficient engine type, with the reliability and longevity of jet engines, and a smaller, slimmer, footprint advantage.

Amazing engineering and even more amazing explanation. Absolutely loved it, I'd love to see more of these kinds of videos!

Great explanation. I’ve been flying turboprops for years and actually learned some new stuff!!! Thanks for the info!!!

Your video title is spot on! Thanks for the fantastic, thorough, yet easily understandable explanation! Well done!

Outstanding explanation & great animations!
Cheers, Eric

Das war sehr Informativ! Super Erklärt! Danke Joe!

Retired from Alaska Air's regional service, Horizon Air, just recently. Went from AMT into Maint QC and eventually to their Propulsion Shop and worked on the RR Spey, GE CF34's and the P&W 123, 125 and 150 Turboprops. These Amazing Turboprop Engines are also Reverse Flow but put out 2300, 2500 and 5000 Shaft Horsepower to the Prop. The 150 swings a 13.75 ft diameter Dowty 6 Blade Prop and are used on the Dehavilland Q-400. What I would ad here is that after 100's of Borescopes (internal microscopic inspection), performed on these P&W Turboprops, I was amazed at how damage tolerant they are. Damages are usually confined to Combustion Liner wear and Compressor section Blade wear from normal use. P&W has every imaginable type of wear damage Recorded and Mapped for reference and all are well documented and tested for continued service. The more wear found, the more often the Borescope procedure. These are Fabulous engines that have been around a while and contain the Technology that has made the new PW1000G Geared Turbofan so successful. These GTF engines have 40 yrs+ of development behind them and offer a 15% savings in fuel economy over normal Turbofans. It was because of this fuel saving P&W GTF, used on the Airbus A320, that Boeing needed to provide something competitive, and thus, the 737 MAX was born. Boeing's answer to saving fuel was to mount the 737's existing GE CFM56-78 Turbofans UP further into the Wing, and Inboard as well, giving a considerable boost in fuel savings by reducing Drag. The downfall was that the faster this configuration of 737 flew, the more the plane wanted to climb and go "out of trim". Thus they had to invent the MCAS computer driven auto trim system (maneuvering characteristics augmentation system), to prevent the plane from climbing out as speed increased. That's where they got into trouble w/ the MAX. They Didn't inform the Pilots about this AutoTrim system, nor did they give a way for the Pilots to override it in case of a Pitot Tube (speed sensor) failure.

The most clear and easily understandable explaination I've ever watched and heard.

There is a regional airport very close to my work, and you can always tell when a turboprop is on the line due to its distinctive sound when taking off. Very cool!

thank you for this video, went to A&P school about 10+ years ago & this is probably the best way i think i've seen a turboprop engine demonstrated

Sir, I am a retired machinery engineer for a major oil company and worked with gas turbines, hot gas expanders, axial/centrifugal air compressors and high pressure to low pressure turbo expanders for 39 years and this by far is the best explanation I have ever seen, you did a fantastic job. I really enjoyed listening to your explanation.

This was highly educational! Thank you for sharing the details without any craziness. Much appreciated. :)

I love the sound of turboprops spooling up. That high frequency sound underscored by a smooth base thrum gives me goosebumps. The only thing that beats it is the bodily acoustic overlapping resonances of rocket launches. Auditory heaven that's worth the eardrums.

Great video Captain!! Easy to follow along, and you explained this really well. Thank you for taking the time to do this. It's clear you had a vision and you executed it well. Looking forward to more videos like this.

This was very enjoyable to watch as the visuals and explanations were very educational. Thank you for the high quality content !

Wow, hands down best turboprop explanation I've seen. Thanks, Captain Joe!

Awesome vid, very informative! Thanks for sharing!

Well done! Thanks Joe!

Concise explanation, visually clean and precise illustration with no gimmicks. Excellent presentation - well done! Subscribed.

Thanks Joe! What a great video with very good explanations. Haven't seen anything better.

Holy Toledo, the airflow takes A LOT of turns in this engine! 😲
But this video really lives up to its title - now I really have a grasp how turboprop engines (and stationary turbine power generators) actually work. Well done! 😎👍

As someone with very little prior knowledge of how aircraft engines work, this was brilliantly explained. Thanks.

*That cutaway would make a great conversation piece in my living room.*

Absolutely fantastic! Thanks Capt Joe!