Rolls-Royce/Snecma Olympus 593
| Olympus 593 | |
|---|---|
| On display at the Aerospace Bristol museum | |
| Type | Turbojet |
| National origin | United Kingdom/France |
| Manufacturer | Rolls-Royce Limited/Snecma |
| First run | June 1966 |
| Major applications | Concorde |
| Developed from | Rolls-Royce Olympus |
The Rolls-Royce/Snecma Olympus 593 was an Anglo-French turbojet with reheat, which powered the supersonic airliner Concorde. It was initially a joint project between Bristol Siddeley Engines Limited (BSEL) and Snecma, derived from the Bristol Siddeley Olympus 22R engine. Rolls-Royce Limited acquired BSEL in 1966 during development of the engine, making BSEL the Bristol Engine Division of Rolls-Royce.
Until regular commercial flights by Concorde ceased in October 2003, the Olympus turbojet was unique in aviation as the only turbojet with reheat powering a commercial aircraft.
The overall efficiency of the engine in supersonic cruising flight (supercruise) was about 43%, which at the time was the highest figure recorded for any normal thermodynamic machine.