F404-GE-IN20 engines ordered for LCA

Bangalore, Feb 6 (UNI) Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has ordered an additional 24 F404-GE-IN20 afterburning engines, worth over 100 million US Dollars, to power the first operational squadron of Tejas fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force.

The order was in addition to an initial 2004 purchase of 17 F404-GE-IN20 engines to power a limited series of operational production aircraft and naval prototypes, GE said in a release here today.

Earlier this year, the F404-GE-IN20 was trial-installed in Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) as part of final evaluations towards flight testing, scheduled for mid-2007. The F404-IN-20 engine had generated more than 19,000 pounds (85 kN) uninstalled thrust and completed 330 hours of Accelerated Mission testing, the equivalent of 1,000 hours of flight operation.

The F404-GE-IN20 succeeded F404-F2J3 development engines used for close to 600 flights, cumulatively covering eight engines.

Based on the F404-GE-402, the F404-GE IN20 was the highest rated F404 model and included a higher-flow fan, increased thrust, a Full Authority Digital Electronic Control system, single-crystal turbine blades and a variety of single-engine features.

The F404 fighter engine family was one of the most successful engines in military aviation history. More than 4,000 F404 engines power a number of combat aircraft and have been used by the United States Navy and Marine Corps, besides countries throughout Europe, Asia and Africa.

UNI