SEOUL - GE's F110 engine is powering Boeing's newest fighter aircraft, the F-15K, which makes its public debut at the Korean Aerospace and Defense Exhibition this week.
First flight of the F110-GE-129-powered F-15K occurred in March 2005. To date, the F110 has powered more than 75 flights of the first five production aircraft. In 2002, the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) chose the F110-GE-129 (rated at 29,000 pounds thrust) to power 40 new Boeing F-15K aircraft, launching the popular F110 on the twin-engine application.
"We are pleased to be powering a new generation of F-15 fighters," said Al DiLibero, general manager of the F110 engine program at GE. "We are also pleased that 78 of the F110 engines will be assembled through a licensing agreement with Samsung Techwin Co, LTD, continuing their long-term involvement with GE engines."
The United States Air Force (USAF) completed a highly successful field service evaluation of the F110-GE-129 powering an F-15E aircraft in 1999, after engines surpassed 1,900 flight hours on the aircraft. The USAF extended the program beyond the originally planned 1,000-hour mark due to the engine's excellent performance and high mission readiness rate of the aircraft/engine combination.
Earlier this year, the USAF awarded GE a $57 million contract to upgrade an initial 95 F110 fighter engines for F-16C/D aircraft as part of a Service Life Extension Program (SLEP).
Funded in the USAF F110 Component Improvement Program, the SLEP upgrade includes the successful CFM56-7 commercial engine core (which powers the Boeing Next-Generation 737s), 3D aero technology, and a redesigned flow path with changes to the combustor and high-pressure turbine.
These enhancements can help provide up to a 25% improvement in cost-per-flying-hour, a significant time-on-wing increase, and elimination of special inspections.
GE and the USAF estimate the potential savings of SLEP to a USAF fleet of about 800 F110 engines at approximately $1 billion. Available in late 2005, SLEP technology could be incorporated into new F110-GE-129 engines delivered beyond 2006.
GE's F110 has been the best-selling engine for F-16C/D aircraft for two decades, and F110-GE-129 engines currently power 70 percent of the latest-generation F-16C/Ds worldwide. More than 3,000 F110 engines have been ordered since the engine was first selected by the USAF in 1984.