GE Aviation buys Czech turboprop engine maker

GE Aviation said it purchased Walter Engines, a manufacturer of small turboprop engines and machined parts for the aviation industry.

Cincinnati-based GE Aviation did not disclose terms of the deal, but spokeswoman Deborah Case said it was less than $70 million.

Walter Engines, based in the Czech Republic, has made aircraft engines since 1923. It reported revenue of $28 million in 2007, GE Aviation said.

GE Aviation, a business of Fairfield-based General Electric Co., makes commercial and military jet engines, components and mechanical systems for aircraft.

Case said GE Aviation intends to compete against Pratt & Whitney's PT6 engine.

"It will allow us to compete in a segment we've not competed in before," she said. "We know they definitely have a big presence in the market and this opportunity with Walter allows us to enter that.

"Whatever win we can get from the market is a win. It's more than we have now," she said.

Pratt & Whitney Canada, a Longueuil, Quebec-based subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., has produced PT6 engines since 1963.

"We take all competition very seriously," said Nancy German, spokeswoman for Pratt & Whitney Canada.