Pratt & Whitney is evaluating engine options in the 10,000lb-thrust to 15,000lb-thrust range for the US Air Force’s next-generation T-X training requirement, says P&W military engines president Bennett Croswell.
The engine manufacturer is working with several airframers to define the requirement for the aircraft scheduled to replace hundreds of Northrop T-38C Talon jet trainers in the USAF fleet.
P&W’s review of engine options for T-X spans the entire range of the company’s portfolio, including engines manufactured by Pratt & Whitney Canada.
P&WC has recently certificated a 16,000lb-thrust engine to power the Gulfstream G500 business jet called the PW800. That engine core is derived from the PW1000G family of commercial engines.
That core is able to be “affordably” repackaged for military applications by adopting a new low-pressure module, including a low-bypass ratio inlet fan, Croswell says.
The approach continues P&W’s PW9000 engine concept unveiled several years ago, which proposed adding a scaled version of the low-pressure section of the F135 engine with the core of the PW1000G.
The same concept is also being considered to support the US Navy’s requirement for an unmanned carrier launched surveillance and strike (UCLASS) aircraft, he says.
But the continuing debate over whether the UCLASS aircraft should be optimized for the surveillance or strike missions has major implications for the engine design, Croswell says. A surveillance engine would be optimised for long loiter times, while a strike-optimised system would need better acceleration and speed capability.
Source: Flight Daily News
