NASA takes delivery of F414 engine destined for X-59
Two General Electric F414-GE-100 engines for NASA’s X-59 Quiet Supersonic Technology aircraft have been delivered to Armstrong Flight Research Center on Edwards Air Force Base.
Photo: NASA
There it will be checked out and inspected before it is transported to nearby Palmdale for eventual installation into the experimental aircraft.
This new variant was derived from a F414-GE-39E that powers the Saab Gripen E fighter, it was built from scratch by General Electric. Engineers had wanted to use the F404 engine but found that the older engine lacked the necessary thrust to push the X-59 into supersonic flight regime.
But to save weight and space, the X-59’s version of the F414 does not have the tracks, so the engine – which will be placed underneath the aircraft and lifted, says the press release.
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