Thermal management system for an aircraft including an electric propulsion engine

A method for operating an aircraft comprising:

• receiving data indicative of an operating condition of an electric propulsion engine of a propulsion system of the aircraft, the electric propulsion engine comprising an electric motor for driving a fan, a stage of inlet guide vanes upstream of the fan, a stage of outlet guide vanes downstream of the fan, an engine heat source exchanger for receiving heat from the electric motor, a first heat sink exchanger in thermal communication with the engine heat source exchanger and coupled to the stage of inlet guide vanes, and a second heat sink exchanger in thermal communication with a heat source exchanger of the aircraft and coupled to the stage of inlet guide vanes;
• rejecting heat from the engine heat source exchanger to the first heat sink exchanger in thermal communication with a fan air flowpath of the electric propulsion engine;
• receiving data indicative of a desired amount of heat exchange from the heat source exchanger in thermal communication with an aircraft heat source to the second heat sink exchanger in thermal communication with the fan air flowpath of the electric propulsion engine;
• and
• controlling an actual amount of heat exchange from the heat source exchanger to the second heat sink exchanger by controlling a speed of the fan of the electric propulsion engine based on the received data indicative of the operating condition of the electric propulsion engine and the received data indicative of the desired amount of heat exchange.