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Aviation History
1990
1990 - 2844.PDF
TECHNICAL: AIR TRANSPORT Lockheed eyes L-100 freighter Lockheed has developed a commercial version of the C-130 with a side loading door to improve productivity. Dubbed the L-100F, it was shown in model form at Farn- borough and could be launched at next year's Paris Air Show. Current L-100-30s carry five 96in (2.43m) x 96in (2.43m) x 125in (3.17m) Ml pallets fore and aft. Introduction of the 138in (3.5m) x 108in (2.74m) side door permits three Mis to be loaded laterally ahead of the wing spar/landing gear struc ture, which restricts loading from the rear, allowing a sixth pallet to be carried. Since cargo aircraft run out of space before reaching their load limit (they "cube out" before they "weigh out"), increasing volume im proves L-100 productivity. To obtain sufficient width, Lockheed has raised the forward floor by 4in (10cm) to provide a 126in (3.2m) wide x 103in (2.6m) cross-section. A seventh Ml pallet could be accommo dated if the fuselage was stretched by 3.04m (10ft). Existing L-lOOs could be modified, giving operators 20% revenue increase, according to Lockheed. Gross payload is given as 45,4551b (20,600kg) palletised cargo over a range of more than 1,200 nm (2,220km). The L-100F will cost about $30 million. Lockheed is con sidering more powerful Allison Freight carrier success lifts side-loading L-lOOF's chances T56 Series IV engines, already flying in Lockheed's high- technology testbed, and new Hamilton Standard five-blade or Dowty six-blade propellers, which should offer 13% better specific fuel consumption. The L-100F is expected to cruise at 365kt (670km/h) compared with the -30's 300kt, the wing accommodating the extra power without modification. Electronic flight instrumenta tion is being considered to per mit use of a two-man crew, although Roger Shaar, the com mercial marketing operations manager, concedes that opera tors like to carry a third crew man as loadmaster. Shaar says that the "phenom enal growth" enjoyed by dedi cated carriers such as United Parcel Services, Federal Express ISOTOV TURBOPROP TESTED Ilyushin's IL-76T engine testbed, seen recently at the Zhukovsky test centre with an Isotov TV7-117 turboprop mounted on the No.2 pylon. The six-bladed l,760kW (2,350hp) turboprop powers the Ilyushin 11-114 regional airliner. Additional side mounted air intakes provide cooling for test equipment. and Emery Air Freight, and the number of Boeing 747 freighters flying with major airlines, con vinced Lockheed that there is a new scheduled, disciplined mar ket for the L-100 (which has traditionally sold to ad hoc op erators), particularly as a feeder for major carriers such as KLM and Air France. Lockheed is talking to Ameri can Airlines and Mexicana and sees United and Northwest as candidates, although Shaar ac knowledges that "there is no stated need for the aircraft". Shaar says that the market is growing at 10% annually, while passenger traffic is increasing by 6-7% alongside economic growth of only 2-3%. Lockheed expects the 130-odd 747Fs to grow to 350 in the next ten years, with particular growth in the Pacific region. All-passenger or mixed-traffic "combi" ver sions will be pursued only when the cargo market is well de fined. Shaar is confident that the project will go ahead: "We are sitting on a gold mine." • P&WC turboprops set for growth Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) is studying further growth versions of its PW100 and PT6 turboprops for the regional-airliner and general- aviation markets, respectively. It sees little interest in a turbo prop variant of the new PW300 turbofan, however. The manufacturer is talking to original equipment suppliers about the PW130 — A PW100 variant with 30% more power than the PW124 series used on the Fokker 50, British Aero space ATP and Aerospatiale/ Aeritalia ATR72. Engineering work is under way to permit P&WC to deliver engines within four years of a go-ahead- not expected before 1991. The new variant would pro vide improved hot-and-high performance and higher speed for any new generation of tur boprop regional airliners or de velopments of current designs. A major consideration for airframe manufacturers who might adopt the more powerful engine is its greater size. Senior P&WC vice-president Dick McLachlan says that it will have to be heavier and larger to "...pump more air". Accord ingly, any existing airframe ap plication will need new mount ings and a new nacelle. The PW127, a 10% higher- power growth variant of the PW124 was announced at the Farnborough Air Show. (Flight, 12-18 September). P&WC is working on devel opment of the PT6A-70, which could offer as much as 15% more power than the current -67, largest version of the ubiq uitous turboprop engine. • N EWS I NB RIEF COLLINS GPS DEAL Collins has signed a market ing deal with Teldix of West Germany over its Global Po sitioning System (GPS) equipment. The agreement focuses on Collins' minia ture airborne GPS unit, Re ceiver 3m, which is to be marketed by Teldix. MONARCH PICKS TCAS Honeywell's Air Transport Systems division has been selected by Monarch Airlines to supply traffic alert and collision avoidance systems for the British carrier's fleet of Boeing 757 and 767 and Airbus Industrie A300-600 aircraft.
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