Rolls-Royce said it created a kit that can produce 17 percent more power in challenging conditions from V-22 engines.
Rolls-Royce Senior Vice President for United States Government Program Tom Hartmann told Defense Daily
Thursday the company’s “Hot and High Kit” for its AE1007C engines on the V-22 includes an upgrade to the engine’s turbine, known as Block 3, in addition to other software and hardware upgrades. Hartmann said the upgrade allows the AE1007C engine to produce more power in high altitude and high temperature conditions like those found in rugged environments like Afghanistan.
Hartmann said the challenge in such an environment is not only does high altitude thin the air, but temperatures are also very hot at such an altitude, making it more difficult for engines to produce the power they need.
“That’s a double whammy,” Hartmann said. “You don’t get the cold air and you got the thin air. So that makes the engine gasp for air and would make me gasp for air as well.”
Hartmann said Rolls-Royce started testing about a year ago, with important ground tests in late 2013, and finished testing earlier this year. The company proved it could get 17 percent more power, Hartmann said, with a 150-hour durability test that “came out looking great.”
Following these tests, Rolls-Royce, in tandem with V-22 co-developers Bell Helicopter and Boeing [BA], ran tests on the aircraft at Kirtland AFB, N.M., which features similar hot and high altitude conditions found in Afghanistan. These tests were successful, Hartmann said.
Hartmann said technology from the “Hot and High Kit” is already available on the company’s AE3007 and AE2100 lines of engines. Bell Helicopter is a division of Textron [TXT].