Sat, Sep 27, 2008
Aircraft Equipped With Hamilton Sundstrand NP2000
Propellers
A New York Air National Guard 109th
Airlift Wing LC-130 aircraft equipped with Hamilton Sundstrand
NP2000 propellers took its first operational flight on Tuesday,
September 16, from the unit's base in Scotia, NY. The aircraft is
the first of 12 New York Air National Guard C-130s planned for
retrofit with Hamilton Sundstrand NP2000 propellers.
The 109th Airlift Wing will fly the NP2000-equipped LC-130 on a
mission to Antarctica in November. The 109th Airlift Wing flies US
Air Force's only ski-equipped LC-130s, which are capable of
operating off polar snows and ice as well as from conventional and
unimproved runways. The 109th's missions include support of
scientific research on the Greenland icecap and in Antarctica and
Aeromedical Evacuation from front-line combat zones and remote
emergency sites worldwide.
The New York Air National Guard LC-130's first operational
flight with NP2000 propellers follows a five-month flight test
program in which NP2000 propellers were installed on a Wyoming Air
National Guard C-130. The results showed NP2000 propellers provide
similar aircraft handling and offer better performance than 54H60
propellers. The NP2000 propellers reduce external and cabin noise,
lower vibration, and offer better reliability while reducing fuel
consumption. Hamilton Sundstrand's NP2000 propeller system has also
performed successfully in previous flight tests on a Snow Aviation,
Inc. C-130E. The US Navy has realized these benefits as it
currently employs the NP2000 on its fleet of E-2C Hawkeye aircraft
(below).
"After a year of successfully flying our electronic propeller
control upgrade on this LC-130, we are pleased to see the benefits
of propeller modernization begin for this operational unit," said
Robert Schechtman, business development manager of Hamilton
Sundstrand's propulsion business. "The NP2000 propeller system
brings many benefits to C-130 users including shorter take-off
roll, improved climb, quieter operations, and lower operating and
support costs."
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