F-16/101 Derivative Fighter Engine

F-16/101
Derivative Fighter Engine

A series of four 30,750 lb.st General Electric F101 turbofans the powerplants of the Rockwell B - 1A Lancer strategic bomber in the long run, President Jimmy Carter decided to cancel the B - 1A in 1977, after completing just four examples.







In search of new customers for the engine turbofan of the F101, its electronics are reworked engines for fighter aircraft under engine fighter derivative (DFE) program, the USAF / Navy participated in the survey powerplants alternative to Pratt & Whitney F100 turbofan. In F - 16 and for the TF30 turbofan F - 14 TOMCAT new engine was designated F101X, and featured some of which were derived from the F404 engine used in the F/A-18 Hornet, these include a fan and head up. injection and the afterburner.Test the soil.
Engine before reaching full power on December 30, 1979, the first day of testing ground. During the following months, it clocked up 60 hours of work at all levels of power. By the autumn of 1980, the F - 101 has completed 430 hours of Accelerated Mission testing - equivalent to 1,000 hours of F - 16 aircraft.
Since the start of the experiment, the maximum force has been reduced to less than two per cent while the consumption of fuel in the afterburning mode has only increased by one percent. The engine was stripped down for the inspection found to be in good condition will receive the new test is intended to simulate the 1,000 hours of flying in the F - 14.

The first FSD F - 16A (# 75-0745) has been installed F101X DFE engine and flew for the first time on December 19, 1980 General Electric engines that perform better than the F100, which is also experiencing problems. teething But the amount of air that has a problem with high-frequency vibrations at the entrance of the engine and an example of a leak of fuel that must be corrected with minor modifications.
The test flight goes smoothly, all-purpose F-16/101 experiments were done by May 29 of next year in 58 sorties and 75 flight hours - 25 hours less than planned. Twelve pilot flying in the program was developed which include the support of the strike missions and air - to - air, especially the events that marred the program had moved quickly and successfully gain access. dead stick landing in January 1981 due to the leakage of fuel.
In the case of engine F101 is not used for the F - 16 and F - 16 is still powered by a Pratt & Whitney F100 turbofan, a few years more, until the advent of the General Electric F110 turbofan, which developed the DFE F101X F - 110. were later used as an alternative powerplant for the Fighting Falcon.