Development Status of the U.S. Army Small Heavy Fuel Engine (SHFE) VAATE Program

Honeywell Aerospace Advanced Technology recently completed testing of 2 core engines in support of the Department of Defense (DoD), NASA, DoE and Industry “Versatile Affordable Advanced Turbine Engine” (VAATE) development initiative. The core tests support the Small Heavy Fuel Engine (SHFE) development of an advanced 700 shaft horsepower (shp) turboshaft/turboprop engine that is under contract with the US Army Applied Aviation Technology Directorate (AATD). Primary applications are focused toward military and commercial light helicopter and Unmanned Air Vehicle applications with growth opportunities for ground vehicle and power generation, or as a small turbofan. The high power to weight, low specific fuel consumption and cost reduction goals demand that the small turbomachinery components are highly efficient, robust and affordable. To meet these challenges and stay within development budgets, the SHFE program has developed and streamlined a comprehensive component development approach that includes extensive rig testing to validate technology capabilities before being tested in a core and full-up engine demonstration. This paper provides an overview of the SHFE program goals, select component achievements, and the core engine test successes that demonstrate both performance and mechanical integrity toward meeting SHFE goals.