FutureFlight
Russia Sees Hybrid Propulsion Potential in Updated Rotary Piston Engines
A government-backed research institute is funding work to develop a hybrid-electric powertrain based on a new version of the Wankel piston engine that is now being used to power Mazda's new RX-8 car.
Hybrid-electric Yak 40
Russia's aerospace industry is advancing plans for possible hybrid-electric aircraft, such as this testbed based on a Yak-40 jet, and is now exploring the potential to develop a new powertrain around a modernized rotary piston engine. (Photo: Vladimir Karnozov)

Russia’s aerospace and automotive industries are looking to give rotary piston engines a new lease on life as part of innovative propulsion systems for hybrid-electric aircraft. The move follows the decision of Japanese carmaker Mazda to switch to a piston engine to extend the range of its MX-30 sports utility vehicle.

It is now almost 20 years since Russia ceased production of rotary piston-powered aircraft and automobiles, and that was a full decade before Mazda introduced its RX-8 rotary car in 2012. Now the  Russian aerospace industry is tapping new technology to overcome that vehicle’s baseline Wankel engine, which included rapid wear to the rotor and its housing (the stator) and carbon residue buildup leading to loss of compression.