Running Hot and Water bombers
The F-35 needs an engine upgrade, and how Mars came to mean firefighter
Get rid at the outset of the idea that the airplane is only an air-going sort of automobile. It isn’t. It may sound like one and smell like one, and it may have been interior decorated to look like one; but the difference is — it goes on wings.”
— Wolfgang Langewiesche, author of Stick and Rudder
On the Radar
Happy 4th of July! In the realm of cutting-edge military aviation, the F-35 Lightning is now facing a new conundrum that originates from its very engine. Despite its remarkable abilities, the F135 engine by Pratt & Whitney - the heart of all three Lightning variants - is grappling with a crucial problem: it lacks the necessary electrical output to feed the escalating demand of sophisticated electronic systems and weaponry. We are looking at the very real possibility of the F-35 being thrust into an engine contest halfway through its production life, a contest involving two colossal names in the industry, General Electric and Pratt & Whitney - a scenario that's starting to heat up.
The F135 engine was designed to provide some 13 kilowatts of cooling in the form of “bleed air” and while this was sufficient for the early Block 1 and Block 2 batches of the Lightning, Block 3 has had issues providing enough power and Block 4 will definitely demand even more power/cooling.
As a solution to this, Pratt and Whitney, the developers of the F135 engine, have proposed an answer: the Engine Core Upgrade (ECU). These enhancements can be implemented on both existing and newly built F135 engines which are utilized by all three F35 models - General Electric may have something to say about this, more below. The ECU is designed to operate concurrently with other power and thermal management system upgrades, or PTMS.
But there's even more to it! Collins Aerospace, a subsidiary of Raytheon which is also Pratt and Whitney's parent company, is in the process of developing an advanced power and cooling system known as EPACS. Coupled with the ECU and PTMS upgrades, they are confident that the F-35 will have an impressive 80 kilowatts of cooling power, which should be more than sufficient to meet its operational requirements throughout the F-35's service life, including the advancements associated with the Block 5 upgrades and beyond.
However General Electric has submitted their XA100 Adaptive Engine into the mix for consideration. Adaptive engines can switch dynamically between high thrust and high efficiency modes automatically and are the results of the Air Force’s Adaptive Engine Transition Program or AETP. Pratt & Whitney has also made their own version of an adaptive engine, dubbed the XA101.
For now, it looks like congress wants to go with the ECU upgrades for the existing F135 engines, meaning that the adaptive engines will likely be seen on the 6th generation NGAD fighter. New video in the works, be sure to check the channel!
This week in aviation history
On 3 July 1942, the Martin Model 170 took off for its first flight, from the Chesapeake Bay waters. Later designated the XPB2M-1 Mars, the aircraft was intended to be a long-range patrol bomber. With a crew of 11, a wingspan of 200 feet, and a gross weight of 140,000 pounds, the Mars entered service for the Navy flying cargo to Hawaii and the Pacific Islands. Ultimately just five of the seven examples produced would enter military service, these would be: Marianas Mars, Philippine Mars, Marshall Mars, Caroline Mars, and Hawaii Mars.
The aircraft continued to serve through the end of the war, and in 1950 the Marshall Mars was lost when an engine fire consumed the airplane. The crew was able to evacuate but the aircraft was consumed by the flames near Hawaii. The “Big four” that remained continued to fly Naval cargo on the San Fransisco-Honolulu route until 1956. After being retired from Navy service, the four aircraft were sold to a consortium of British Columbia forest companies and found new life as a firefighting tanker aka “water bombers”. In this line of duty, two were lost: Marianas Mars crashed in 1961 during firefighting operations - all four crewmembers were lost; the following year in 1962 Caroline Mars was damaged by Typhoon Freda - the damages were deemed to be beyond repair for the aircraft. The two remaining examples Hawaii Mars and Philipine Mars are inactive as of today, and as of last year Hawaii Mars was put up for sale. Asking price: $5 Million.
In case you missed it
3 July was a day of first flights: in 1982 the F-16XL, a double delta winged version of the famous fighter first took to the skies. You can watch more here:
Photo Outlet
Here’s an F-15C belonging to the Louisiana Air National Guard, aka the “Cajun Militia”. Note the “JZ” on the tail - two of these Eagles put on an incredible show at last year’s Wings over Houston airshow.
Member Benefits
This newsletter will always be free - and thank you for being a subscriber, however if you want to help support my efforts you can join as a member. Members will get occasional exclusive issues that will take a deeper dive into topics covered in the newsletter, along with the ability to help choose future topics.
That’s all for this week, thanks for reading! If you know a fellow aviation enthusiast that would enjoy these weekly newsletters, then please forward this along. Now you know!
-Tog