Days after the US Air Force announced that a choice would be made later this month, the Pentagon reported that Rolls Royce has been contracted to supply the new engines for the B-52H Stratofortress strategic bomber fleet.
The initial contract has a value of US$500,870,458, which can reach US$2,604,329,361 if all options are exercised. In all, 608 F130 turbofan engines will be purchased, enough to replace the old TF33s on a 1:1 scale. The USAF has 76 B-52 bombers in service, each powered by eight Pratt & Whitney TF33P-3 engines. The TF33 is the military version of the JT3D, a low-by turbofan used on the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8.
In addition to commercial engines, RR will supply “spare engines, associated equipment, and commercial engineering data, including sustainment activities, to be used on the B-52H bomber fleet.” The Department of Defense also reported that the work will be performed by RR in Indianapolis, Indiana, with completion scheduled for September 2038.
The F130, the military version of the BR700 series, beat General Electric's CF34-10 and Pratt & Whitney's PW800. The new ones will allow the B-52 to be flying beyond the 2050s, that is, 100 years after its first flight, in April 1952. The jet entered service with the USAF in 1955.
According to The War Zone, the USAF was spending $2 million to overhaul each TF33 engine every six thousand flight hours. Rolls Royce, on the other hand, believes there will be no need to completely replace any of the F130s during the rest of the B-52H's expected service life.
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“Once installed, the F130 will provide much greater fuel efficiency while increasing range and reducing the need for tankers,” check out the Rolls-Royce website.
