Fri, Dec 26, 2008
Variable Area Vane Box Nozzle Will Be Integrated By Pratt &
Whitney
Rolls-Royce announced Wednesday it has delivered its first
production Variable Area Vane Box Nozzle (VAVBN) to Pratt &
Whitney for integration on the F-35B Lightning II aircraft. The
VAVBN is now ready to be shipped to Joint Strike Fighter (JSF)
partner Northrop Grumman for integration into the aircraft.
Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems are the principal industrial
partners developing the F-35 with Lockheed Martin Corporation.
The VAVBN is integral to the aircraft structure and is used to
control the LiftFan exit airflow when the short take-off vertical
landing (STOVL) variant of the aircraft is operated in powered-lift
mode. Final assembly was completed at the Rolls-Royce facilities in
Indianapolis.
"Today’s delivery represents a significant milestone for
the Rolls-Royce LiftSystem program," said Dennis Jarvi, President
for Rolls-Royce Defense North America. "The VAVBN provides both
thrust vectoring and area-control capability and is an integral
part of the aircraft structure. It has undergone over 3500 hours of
development testing in the System Development and Demonstration
(SDD) program. We are extremely proud that it is ready for
production delivery on schedule."
The VAVBN is installed as one of the first items in the aircraft
assembly sequence and, once installed, the VAVBN frame is never
removed throughout its planned service life of 8,000 flight
hours.
The Rolls-Royce LiftSystem consists of the Rolls-Royce LiftFan,
the 3 Bearing Swivel Module (3BSM), and the Roll Posts. Rolls-Royce
developed the VAVBN as part of the LiftSystem under the F135 System
Design and Development contract.
The initial VAVBN production delivery will be under the Low Rate
Initial Production (LRIP 2) contract awarded in November 2008 worth
$131 Million by Pratt & Whitney for the F135 LRIP2 Program.
This VAVBN delivery is the first of six for the STOVL variant F-35B
Lightning aircraft.
Delivery of the remaining LiftSystem modules under the LRIP 2
contract will begin in 2009 and continue through 2010.
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