Lockheed-Martin Skunk Works at It Again

True Blue Power—the Kansas and California-based aerospace technology concern specializing in the design and manufacture of aircraft electrical power systems, USB and wireless chargers, power conversion products, emergency power supplies, and advanced lithium-ion batteries—has announced its TB44 (46 amp-hour) Lithium-ion Aircraft Battery and TI2004 (2,000 VA) DC-to-AC Inverter will provide power to the Lockheed-Martin Skunk Works X-59 plane.

Ascribed the clever appellation Quesst, subject aircraft comprises unique fuselage and airfoil architecture designed to mitigate the occurrence and volume of sonic-boom phenomena. A facet of NASA’s Low-Boom Flight Demonstrator project, the 59 Quesst is integral to the agency’s attempts to impart increased practicality to overland supersonic flight.

The X-59’s elongated, slender structure is salient to its mission, and occasions need for precise weight specifications and emergency power loads. The True Blue Power TB44 battery is the only commercially-available, certified lithium-ion battery that meets the aircraft’s unique demands. Weighing only 51.7-pounds and providing excellent and consistent electrical output, the TB44 battery affords Lockheed-Martin engineers optimal design flexibility.

Similarly, the True Blue Power TI2004 inverter is uniquely capable of meeting the X-59’s three-phase, 400 Hz power requirements. The aircraft utilizes no fewer than three interconnected inverters producing six-thousand watts of power. The TI2004 is smaller, lighter, and more efficient than competing units, and provides input transient, overload, and short-circuit protection up to 150-percent of its rated load.

True Blue Power vice-president of OEM sales Erik Ritzman stated: “The TB44 lithium-ion battery and TI2004 inverter are available off-the-shelf. They feature longer useful life and require less maintenance than competing units. This results in significant cost savings, meeting the X-plane’s budgetary requirements.”

FMI: www.truebluepowerusa.com