Westinghouse J30

Westinghouse J30 (1947)

The Westinghouse J30 was an American turbojet engine that was developed from 1941 onwards for the Bureau of Aeronautics of the US Navy . There has been an agreement between the US Navy and the US Army Air Forces since 1946 that jet engines commissioned by the Navy are assigned even numbers, while the Air Force is assigned odd numbers.

history

As one of the largest steam turbine manufacturers in the world, Westinghouse Electric Corporation was one of three US companies to be appointed to the Durand Special Committee on Jet Propulsion . Westinghouse presented a turbojet design there, which received positive reviews in July 1941. On December 8, 1941, a contract was signed with the US Navy to develop the 19A model (19 inch diameter), which was to serve as a start booster . A team in Philadelphia, led by R. P. Kroon, completed the construction in ten months. The X19A had its first test run on March 19, 1943 .

The engine was the second axial-jet engine to be developed outside of Germany and the first gas turbine developed in the USA. The second prototype was installed and flown as a booster under an FG-1 Corsair in January 1944 . The six built X19A were then tested under various test conditions, which ranged from static test bench runs to flights at altitudes of over 7000 m and speeds of 480 km / h. The improved variant 19B had its first flight test on September 28, 1944 on a Martin JM-1 Marauder . As early as January 1944, Pratt & Whitney had received a contract to manufacture 500 copies for the 19XB, which Westinghouse had extensively developed. At the end of the war, the order was cut to 190 engines. This 19XB version was given the Navy designation J30 . On February 1, 1945, Westinghouse Electric founded the largely independent Aviation Gas Turbine Division .

Westinghouse 9.5A (J32)

Further variants were developed in different diameters. These included the Model 9.5A and B, available from January 1944, which were primarily intended for guided missiles and unmanned aircraft, while the J30 was reserved for conventional manned aircraft. The 9.5A variant was given the military designation J32 and was first tested in June 1944, with the J32 delivering a static thrust of 1.23 kN. However, because of the high cost and the preference for rocket engines, it did not go into series production.

The model 24C (24 inch diameter), which was later given the military designation J34 , also belongs to this development line. Allegedly, the designation J43 is said to have been used initially for the variant XJ30-WE-8. However, there is only one available source for this assumption.

construction

The J30 had a 10-stage compressor and developed 1,600  lbf (7.1  kN ) of thrust . The tests took place with a Martin B-26 and was then used to drive the McDonnell FD-1 (later FH-1). Of the total of 261 copies produced by 1948, 130 were made by Pratt & Whitney.

literature

• Antony L. Kay: Turbojet - Volume 2, History and Development 1930-1960. Crowood Press, 2007, ISBN 978-1-86126-939-3 , pp. 105-107
• Bill Gunston: World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines. 3rd updated edition. Patrick Stephens, 1995, ISBN 1-8526-0509-X , p. 178 f.
• Leonard Bridgman (Ed.): Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1950–1951. Samson Low, Marston & Company, London 1950, p. 29d.

Web links

Commons : Westinghouse J30  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ^ Dennis R. Jenkins, Tony R. Landis: Experimental & Prototype US Air Force Jet Fighters. Specialty Press, 2008, pp. XIII f.
2. ↑ Antony L. Kay, 2007, p. 106
3. ^ Andreas Parsch: Designations of US Military Aero Engines. In: designation-systems.net, accessed on December 1, 2019.