Pratt & Whitney is on track to retrofit more than 10 F135 propulsion systems needed to support the US Marine Corps’ plan to achieve initial operational capability (IOC) for the Lockheed Martin F-35B.
The retrofit will upgrade the short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing (STOVL) propulsion system to a more reliable production configuration standard, says Mike Buongiorno, P&W’s vice-president of the F135 propulsion system.
The initial engines being retrofitted belong to the VMFA-121 squadron, which is the unit being prepared for the IOC designation. At the same time, P&W is also retrofitting several engines belonging to aircraft in the Marines’ operational test and evaluation unit for the F-35B, Buongiorno says.
The retrofits are happening as P&W has completed an accelerated mission test (AMT) programme on an F135 engine, he says.
In the second such test on an F-35 propulsion system, the AMT exposed the F135 engine to the equivalent of seven years of service, with 5,000 cycles and nearly 1,200 operational missions.
The AMT engine is now being inspected to discover any issues, but P&W officials are encouraged that the engine lasted the entire duration of test without requiring a tear-down inspection.
Congress is currently evaluating whether to extend funding for line item in the F-35 budget that supported the last AMT test.
P&W hopes to continue the series of accelerated testing on F135 engines as part of a long-term effort to improve reliability and performance.
Specifically, P&W’s goal is to increase the operational life of the aircraft by 50% using data gleaned from such testing, says Bennett Croswell, president of P&W military engines.
Source: Flight Daily News
