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Aviation History
2003
2003 - 0872.PDF
Directory: military engines Model (Inc submodel) Max thrust reheat (lb) Max thrust dry (lb) Max power (SL) (kW) Notes/description CFM56 CFM56-2A/2A2 CFM56-2B1 (F108) CFM56-7B 24,000 22,000 24,075 Turbofan. E-3A AWACS, re-engined RC-135R (USAF), E-6A (USN) and KE-3 Turbofan. Re-engined KC-135R C-135FR, E-3A AWACS, KE-3, and E6-A Turbofan. C-40 and 737AEW&C EUROJETTURBO Eurojet, a collaboration by FiatAvio, ITR MTU and Rolls-Royce, began delivering production-standard EJ200 turbofans developed for the Eurofighter Typhoon in 2002. The four Eurofighter production lines require about 1,500 engines for the 620 aircraft ordered by Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK, and the export market could be twice this size in time. The programme was boosted last year when Austria commited itself to 18 Typhoons, becoming the second export customer after Greece agreed in 2001 to take up to 90 aircraft. The Austrian order is not finalised, however, as a contract was not concluded before elections at the year- end. Although November's loss of Eurofighter development aircraft No 6 was attributed to surges in both EJ200 engines, the powerplants involved were pre- production examples and investigators concluded that the production-standard engines are not susceptible to the same problems. The UK has delayed the Eurofighter's introduction to service until June 2003, to allow more time for per- EJ200 EJ200 20,225 13,483 EURO PROP INTERNATIONAL In May 2002 Rolls-Royce joined ITR MTU and Snecma to form EPI to develop a powerplant for the Airbus Military Company A400M transport. The company replaces Aero Propulsion Alliance (APA), which was disbanded last year after it became clear its offering could not meet the revised A400M electrical power gen eration requirements. APA included Fiat and Belgium's Techspace Aero. Italy has TP400 TP400-D6 formance verification. In December, Eurojet lost to GE's F414 in a bid to provide the powerplant for the EADS Mako advanced supersonic trainer and light attack aircraft set for service entry in 2010. The EJ200 had been downselected with the F414 by EADS earlier last year, after Snecma decided not to upgrade the M88, but lost to the F414's greater power. Eurojet is pitching the EJ200 to power an ini tial production batch of 30 Indian Light Combat Aircraft. Current EJ200 development for tranche 2 and 3 Eurofighter production is focused on improving the engine's life-cycle costs at current thrust ratings. Eurojet is aiming for an ini tial 25% improvement in the engine's installed time from 1,600h to 2,000h by using HPT blades incorporating improved cooling and low-pressure compressor enhancements. A two-dimensional thrust-vectoring nozzle to improve aerody namics and eliminate trim drag is being studied for introduction before tranche 2 engine deliveries begin in 2005. Turbofan. Eurofighter Typhoon 8,195 left the A400M programme, so Fiat has been eliminated from the consortium, and Techspace, majority owned by Snecma, will now take part under the French man ufacturer's control. Snecma and R-R are to collaborate on the core, with R-R responsible for the high-pressure turbine. MTU will develop the intermediate stage compressor and turbine and ITP will provide the low-pressure turbine. Turboprop. Proposed for A400M transport aircraft GAS TURBINE RESEARCH ESTABLISHMENT India's Gas Turbine Research Estabishment (GTRE) continues its lengthy development of the indigenous Kaveri for the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), despite problems which have pushed back its availability from 2004 to 2007. To keep the LCA on track, the Indian air force has ordered a batch of GE F404s, now available following the lifting of a US arms embargo in 2001. Main develop ment issues with the 11,700lb-thrust (dry) rated Kaveri have surrounded the compressor, which failed to achieve the targeted overall engine pressure ratio (EPR) of 21.5. The compressor, which generated an EPR of 19.5:1, also suf- Kaveri Kaveri 18,750 11,700 GE's carefully crafted plan to compete on the JSF was hit in March 2003 when a looming budget cut forced the JSF programme office to order a two-year delay to the GE/R-R F136 alternate engine. While efforts proceed to persuade the programme office to reconsider its move, GE and Rolls-Royce are focused on ways of keeping the F136 engineering team together, and keeping develop ment of the first engine on track. The delay means the F136 will not have the opportunity to compete until 2013, well after its original chance with Lot 4, and coincidently after the initial purchase of the UK's JSF force - widely seen as a major launch candidate for the F136. It is not yet known what the impact of the slippage will be on the F136 development plan, which continues to drive towards the first full engine to test in mid-2004. Inital hardware deliveries are set for August 2003, as is the expected assembly of the engine. It is not known if the team will still receive the F136 System Development Demonstration con tract as planned later in 2003, nor if the formal contract date will still remain the original 2005 target. Despite the slide, the JSF continues to be the jewel in GE's military forecast, being worth an estimated $15 billion plus over the next 15 to fered from vibration problems that contributed to the test engine achieving only 1,200h of its projected 8,000h test run time. A shorter 250h test effort is planned with a partially redesigned compressor for 2003, including simulated high-altitude tests at Russia's Central Institute for Aviation Motors in Moscow. The redesigned engine is also around 150kg lighter than the troubled prototype, which weighed in at around 1,100kg. GTRE plans to conduct more than 6,000h of tests in 2004-5 and expects final certification by the end of 2005 -19 years after the launch of the project. Turbofan. Indigenous engine for Indian LCA 20 years. A further $5 billion is forecast for the same period for a potentially huge series of upgrades and new sales of the F110 and F414. Helicopter engine upgrade and commonality programmes for just the Boeing AH-64 Apache and Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk, for example, could be worth almost $1.4 billion to GE from 2003 to beyond 2015. Another $1 billion is foreseen coming from the on-going F/A-18E/F programme, a five-year multi-year pro curement for up to 625 units between 2003 and 2008 having been agreed in 2002. Tanker programmes and new unmanned combat air vehicles represent opportunities for a further $2.5 billion, says GE. Upgrades represent possibly the surest business for the company, particularly in the wake of the military build-up for the Iraq campaign and increased tempo of operations since September 2001. Worldwide, GE officially lists an installed base of more than 21,000 engines in military service. Upgrades are in the pipeline for all of them, the largest potential being seen for the T700,7,260 of which are in use. In terms of numbers in service the next in line is the venerable J85, with 4,000 in the fleet and retirement not due to 2040. Almost 2,500 CFM56s are also in mili- www.fliqhtinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 22-28 APRIL 2003 45
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