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How many GE engines are we getting for Tejas Mk1, Mk1A and likely to get for Mk2? And about at what cost? Planning to write an article on potential cost savings with having a French assisted Kaveri in context of Rafale. Thanks.
Kakarat wrote:GTRE has issued a tender for 'Expression of Interest for Altitude Tests of Kaveri Engine and its Derivative', bid opening on 1st Aug 18
Dimensions & details of Engine as per EOI document
Inlet Dia : 749mm
Max Dia : 940mm
Length : 3900mm
LP Comp - Three stage
HP Comp - Six stage
HP Turbine - single stage & cooled
LP Turbine - single stage
Main Combustion Chamber - annular direct flow
Afterburner system with axi-symmetric exhaust nozzle
The engine has a Kaveri full Authority Digital Engine Control System (KADECS)
Kaveri is of following performance class at Indian Standard Atmosphere (ISA) Sea level Static (SLS)
Never too late. If not for Tejas then for something. Even an indigenous piston or turboprop (we don’t have either) is useful. Never mind a working turbofan. Many uses UAVs, trainers, cruise missile, you name it.
habal wrote:RD33 weighs 1050 kg and K9 is 1250 kg? So how is this compensated aerodynamically when a twin engine platform carries two dissimilar weighing engines ?
Also since this is a 3 decade old project, many of engine components in present day kaveri would have been developed a couple of decades ago and will not have benefit of advances in mettalurgy and material sciences in the interim. And thus the weight issue. A 4th gen engine developed with 3rd gen materials tech of 70s/80s vintage. This problem occured because of the long gestation. Apart from India, no other country ventured to produce an engine on their own and came so far and thus kaveri looks odd man out in weight class amongst regular engines. the usual engine manufacturers would take 5 years to develop an engine so their materials were/are more current.
In spite of engines with different weights, if they can maintain the aircraft CG within the specified limits, sometimes, additional ballast weights may be required, they should be OK.
Additionally, with differing weights on the two engines, a different trim setting may be required for flight, which may be accommodated by the existing FCS or if not, the FCS itself may have to be tweaked to provide the required safety for the flight tests.
Neshant wrote:Its too late for cost savings and changing engines.
Its time to produce whatever works.
Any more delay and this project is dead.
Cost saving is not the aim. Derisking the supply chain is.
Not advisable to stick with an extremely unreliable, politically driven primary source whose national, regional and military objectives can change at the drop of a hat and whose word is worth nothing. A different administration can scuttle everything simply by going "kerry luger" on us.
This can go on as a separate and independent project without affecting anything ongoing.
If they can rollout a lower thrust engine for UCAV and continue with it to achieve reliability, that would be most important thing.
It is better a UAV with Kaveri crash, than LCA with Kaveri. Thrust can probably increase with collaboration with French/Russians once we prove a reliable engine.
Last edited by nam on 31 Jul 2018 21:01, edited 2 times in total.
Just read the news the Spicejet will buy Bombarider Q400 . 23 bought. 25 further planned.
Q400 uses PW 12X series turboprops.
We have no R&D or development of turboprops. Surely Surely this is a more achievable target with implications for military transport.
Neela wrote:Just read the news the Spicejet will buy Bombarider Q400 . 23 bought. 25 further planned.
Q400 uses PW 12X series turboprops.
We have no R&D or development of turboprops. Surely Surely this is a more achievable target with implications for military transport.
We do not even have a piston for the Rustom I and had to import a Lycoming 4-cylinder. With the Rustom II we needed to import a Saturn turboprop. We do not have a turbojet for trainers, drones, cruise missiles even though we had assembled hundreds of Tumanskies for the MiG-21.
So when we went for a cutting edge combat turbofan with the Kaveri in the 1990s, we were attempting a moonshot without any of the industrial infrastructure needed for such a development.
It could not be anything other than a lab experiment by GTRE because when the industry cannot provide you with components that you have to either make from scratch inside your lab or buy from the phoren market.
We need a foundation for the engine industry. It can’t just be a fighter turbofan. We need the whole gamut — pistons, turboprops and turbojets too.
The Rustom 2 is propelled by two 3-bladed NPO saturn engines.
I hope you are right, Saar!
Which Saturn engine? It all started with Neelam Mathews who said it was a 36MT engine. DDM kept drawing on the same without even realizing that the said engine is a turbofan!
Which Saturn engine? It all started with Neelam Mathews who said it was a 36MT engine. DDM kept drawing on the same without even realizing that the said engine is a turbofan!
*SMACKS FOREHEAD* Now it makes sense! When I first heard of the desi diesel I was confused why they would go from a turboprop back to a piston in the desi diesel. There was never a turboprop in the first place. We are going from Lycoming in Rustom I to desi diesel in Rustom II.
Damn desi media dorks, can’t live them but can’t lve without them.
chola Thanks. sarang was browsing on my tablet. Sorry
The sum total I got from many videos is that MoD is serious and they are following the path nam also hit on.
Kaveri No reheat, Kaveri with reheat and Kaveri ++
SAFRAN is providing the know how.or at-least stiffening the GTRE spine.
The most robust engine out there today for the top tier segment of UAV's are turbo-props my friends. The older generation UAV's started with pistons and then slowly transitioned to turbo props. General-Atomics built Predators use TPE-331. An engine that we are so very well versed with on the
HAL-DO-228 and now being tested on the new HAL Trainer.
With our evolving relationship with Khan, there should not be an issue with the Rustom-2 flying with the TPE-331. Would fly well above the weather, and be able to carry a payload of ordnance. And better still be able to use Jet-A fuel rather than piston powered AV Gas. What a logistics head ache that would be. Nothing in the Indian inventory uses AV Gas. The last of it was on the HPT-32.
^^^ Turboprops give drones endurance. The chini CH-5 and Wing Loong 2 fly on chini turboprops that also power their light utilities. Access to engines allowed the PRC to sell hundreds of hunter-killers to the Middle East.
Along with a turbojet, a turboprop should have been a goal a long time ago. They were achievable goals while went for the RD-33/F101 class moonshot in the kaveri.
1. People did not switch to turboprops because they are more modern. They are necessitated as one goes for larger UAVs.
2. Turboprops don’t give higher endurance, but shorter response time and better high altitude performance.
3. There is nothing stopping us from developing UAVs using turboprops. We have experience in both tractor and pusher configs.
4. HAL is developing a turboprop.
Indranil wrote:1. People did not switch to turboprops because they are more modern. They are necessitated as one goes for larger UAVs.
2. Turboprops don’t give higher endurance, but shorter response time and better high altitude performance.
3. There is nothing stopping us from developing UAVs using turboprops. We have experience in both tractor and pusher configs.
4. HAL is developing a turboprop.
One would assume that for military transport , turboprops would be a better choice as they can do with shorter runways , on top of being more fuel efficient .
On the commercial side, turboprops seems to be a better choice for 300-800km range routes.
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Do you know power rating of HAL's tuboprop?
At its last meeting in July, DTTI’s jet engine working group was shut down for lack of progress. They chose to call it a “strategic pause”. Apparently, the divergence between what India wanted and what the US and General Electric were willing to offer was too wide. It’s obvious that GE will not part with its crown jewel having spent billions in R&D. As someone said, “it’s the one thing the company has”. GE executives saw it as a compromise of their intellectual property to even suggest improvements in an indigenous Indian engine (Kaveri). Differences also emerged because the US wanted a measure of where India was in terms of indigenous engine technology. India was not keen on open access and benchmarking.
At its last meeting in July, DTTI’s jet engine working group was shut down for lack of progress. They chose to call it a “strategic pause”. Apparently, the divergence between what India wanted and what the US and General Electric were willing to offer was too wide. It’s obvious that GE will not part with its crown jewel having spent billions in R&D. As someone said, “it’s the one thing the company has”. GE executives saw it as a compromise of their intellectual property to even suggest improvements in an indigenous Indian engine (Kaveri). Differences also emerged because the US wanted a measure of where India was in terms of indigenous engine technology. India was not keen on open access and benchmarking.
So much for the strategic partnership... dtti was hogwash only, American carrot thrown at us and like always Indians going mad after anything from gora
At its last meeting in July, DTTI’s jet engine working group was shut down for lack of progress.
I wonder what new excuse import lobby is going to come up for f16 now that engine tech is off the table. My money is on super duper stealth and/or sensor fusion.
This is precisely why the DRDO has engaged France’s Safran Aircraft Engines (Snecma) to perform a design audit on the Kaveri. At the moment, Snecma is preparing a detailed report outlining the design changes needed to create flightworthy prototypes. Once Snecma’s report is ready, GTRE expects to get the go-ahead for the next phase of work that will involve modifying existing SoP prototypes and testing them, with a view to creating new prototypes that can be integrated with an actual flight capable airframe. Snecma will also be a consultant for aircraft integration activities.
https://twitter.com/SJha1618/status/1043386033402855425 ---> Given CAATSA et al., a wise course of action would be to reexamine alternatives to the GE F-414 family for the Tejas programme. And most importantly, it is time New Delhi got serious about domestic jet engine development.
A good article read to get a glimpse of RR's chosen path for the future of its engines. We will see the things mentioned here coming to fruition in next 2 decades, starting with the UltraFan planned for EIS in 2025, presumably with Boeing's NMA.
Much of the UltraFan vision is already known. The composite fan, which will replace hollow titanium, to keep weight down, has already been flight-tested. The core around which the low-pressure system – including fan – will be wrapped is being tested as R-R’s well-trailed Advance3 project. This next-generation core has already accumulated 100h of bench testing, built between a Trent XWB-84 fan and Trent 1000 low-pressure turbine. Gearboxes have been under test at a purpose-built facility near Berlin since late 2017