PARIS, France - The members of the JSF-F120 engine team of General Electric (GE), Rolls-Royce (RR), and Allison Advanced Development Company (AADC) have reached agreements with Philips Machinefabrieken (PMF) of The Netherlands whereby Philips will form and lead a consortium of Dutch, Norwegian, and Danish companies to join in the design, development, and manufacture of the JSF-F120 propulsion system for the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program.
PMF, a division of Royal Philips Electronics N.V., specializes in a wide range of production machines and systems, and in the manufacture of aviation components.
"Given the participation of the Dutch, Danish and Norwegian governments in the JSF Concept Demonstration Program in the U.S., Dutch industrial participation with the JSF-F120 team was a natural," said Jim McNerney, president of GE Aircraft Engines, a business unit of General Electric Company. "The proven technologies and performance within Philips and Dutch industry and their healthy financial position and global reach will make them valued team members."
The PMF consortium will be fully integrated into the JSF-F120 team. It is developing world-class technologies to be applied to a wide variety of JSF-F120 engine components. The consortium members will have the opportunity to participate in other GE, RR, and Allison programs.
The JSF-F120 program will enhance ongoing relationships between team members and Dutch industry. PMF is the sole supplier of exhaust nozzle flaps and seals for GE F110 fighter engines and is expanding its relationship into other GE product lines. Rolls-Royce has supplied engines to Fokker and currently has Dutch participation in Rolls-Royce civil and military programs. PMF supplies the inlet scrolls for the Rolls-Royce Model 250 engine.
The JSF-120 has successfully completed the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) Program Office's Critical Design Review for the core of the F120 engine for the JSF Alternate Engine Program. This allowed the team to release hardware for component testing, leading to the full core engine test in mid-2000. Key component-rig tests in 1999: the turbine at GE, the fan at Rolls-Royce, and the combustor at Allison.
JSF development is funded through a four-year, Phase II core engine contract awarded in 1996. The GE-led team is now preparing for the Phase III contract, a four-year development effort that will lead to testing of a full turbofan in 2003.
GE is developing a multistage blisk compressor, radial augmentor and dual control system, and advanced exhaust nozzle. Allison and GE are jointly developing a coupled turbine system (an integrated high-pressure/low-pressure, counter-rotating design), while Allison is responsible for the combustor/diffuser system and the gearbox. Rolls-Royce is developing an increased-flow, three-stage, long-chord blisk fan.