Upgrading F110s for F-16s to keep them in service until 2025

Aviation Week & Space Technology
05/17/2004, page 29

Stanley W. Kandebo
New York

Some highlights;

– USAF is exploring a SLEP to upgrade nearly 850 F110 engines, that could potentially save some $1 billion in the long run.

– New engines will be designated as F110-100C and F110-129B and ready by April of 2005. Will take abour 6 years to overhaul the 850 engines.

– “At the heart of the SLEP is compressor technology lifted from commercial CFM International products. “We have taken CFM56-7 compressor technology, including three-dimensional aerodynamic design techniques, and redesigned the F110 flowpath so we can run the engine cooler at current thrust levels,” McCormick said.

In fact, GE officials have already shown, in tests, the gains that can be made using this approach. “A few years ago we took CFM56 blades, put them in an F110 compressor and successfully ran the compressor in an F110 engine,” McCormick said.

As a result, changes now planned for the F110 include incorporating the CFM56-7 compressor, but changing dovetails and dovetail coatings and contouring the tip of compressor airfoils to meet F110 clearances. Despite modifications, “from an aerodynamics standpoint, this is the CFM compressor,” McCormick said.”

– Other improvements include a stiffer aft shaft, augmentor upgrades, fan vane change, a high-pressure turbine “C” clip fix for the F110-100 and -129, an improved alternator and stronger gearshaft for the F110-100 and -129, and a stronger F100-129 fuel manifold.