Lycoming T55

The Honeywell T55 (formerly Lycoming; company designation LTC-4) is a turboshaft engine used on American helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft (in turboprop form) since the 1950s, and in unlimited hydroplanes since the 1980s. Today, there have been more than 6,000 of these engines built. It is produced by Honeywell Aerospace, a division of Honeywell based in Phoenix, Arizona, and was originally designed by the Turbine Engine Division of Lycoming Engines in Stratford, Connecticut, as a scaled-up version of the smaller Lycoming T53. Both engines are now produced by Honeywell Aerospace, and the T55 serves as the engine on several major applications including the CH-47-Chinook, the Bell 309, and the Piper PA-48 Enforcer. The T55 also serves as the core of the Lycoming ALF 502 turbofan. Since the T55 was first developed, progressive increases in airflow, overall pressure ratio, and turbine inlet temperature have more than tripled the power output of the engine.

Variants

Civil and experimental variants

;LTC4A-1: Turboprop engine with a power rating of and dry weight of ; was designated the YT55-L-1 after its 50-hour qualification test was completed in December 1957
;LTC4B-1:
;LTC4B-2: Geared turboshaft engine with an initial power rating of ; completed a 50-hour qualification test demonstrating in March 1958, and then was designated as the YT55-L-3 with a power rating of
;LTC4B-7: Ungeared version of the LTC4B-2, with an integral oil cooler and tank; demonstrated in January 1960; the higher power rating resulted from increased turbine inlet temperatures, which came from small modifications learned from YT55-L-1 and YT55-L-3 development experience; completed 50-hour qualification test at power rating in February 1960, after which it was designated as the YT55-L-5; completed its 150-hour qualification test in September 1960, after which its designation changed from YT55-L-5 to the T55-L-5 production engine
;LTC4B-8: Civil designation for the T55-L-7 military engine; dry weight of also powered the original Bell 214 helicopter as a engine in 1970
;LTC4B-8D: engine powering the Bell 214A helicopter; uprated from the T55-L-7C; 433 engines produced between 1973 and 1977 for this military helicopter
;LTC4B-11:similar to L-7 with two-stage gas generator turbine
;LTC4B-12: Turboprop engine with a power rating of and a weight of , more than the T55-L-11 that it is derived from; brake-specific fuel consumption (BSFC) of
;LTC4C-2: Civil designation for the YT55-L-1A military turboprop engine
;LTC4G-3: Turboprop engine with a maximum and normal power rating of ; high-performance version of the T55-L-1
;LTC4G-4:
;LTC4K:9-stage compressor
;LTC4K-2:
;LTC4M-1:
;LTC4R-1: Turboprop engine with a power rating of , weight of , pressure ratio of 8.2:1, and a BSFC of
;PLF1A-2: First experimental high-bypass turbofan engine produced in the United States, initially run in February 1964; two produced; used the engine core of the T55-L-7; geared fan stage, producing a static thrust of ; predecessor of the ALF 502 and LF 507 production turbofans; bypass ratio of 6:1; weight of maximum pressure ratio of 1.4:1 (fan) and 9.5:1 (engine), turbine inlet temperature of , maximum rated air flow for the gas generator and fan of , thrust-specific fuel consumption (TSFC) of
;PLF1B-2:Turbofan with T55 / LTC4K 9-stage compressor gas generator core
;PLF1C-1: Turbofan based on the T55-L-7C turboshaft, producing of thrust; length, fan diameter, 6:1 bypass ratio, weight, TSFC of
;PLF1C-2: Turbofan based on the T55-L-11 turboshaft, producing of thrust; length, fan diameter, 8.2:1 bypass ratio, weight, TSFC of
;T5508D: Certified September 16, 1975; dry weight ; engine powering the Bell 214B helicopter, which was produced between 1976 and 1981; 88 engines manufactured for that commercial helicopter; commercial version of the LTC4-8D
;AL5512: Certified November 7, 1980; turboshaft engine with a sea-level power rating of max continuous and 5-minute takeoff; 30-minute power rating of with one engine inoperative; dry weight ; used on the Boeing Model 234 (civilian version of the Chinook); based on the T55-L-712; produced between 1979 and 1985, with 44 engines manufactured; also used on the Boeing Model 360, a technology demonstrator helicopter, in 1987

Military variants

;YT55-L-1: Turboprop engine with a maximum and normal power rating of and a pressure ratio of 6:1
;YT55-L-1A: Turboprop version of the YT55-L-3, producing ; length , diameter , dry weight , pressure ratio 6.5:1, air mass flow , BSFC
;YT55-L-3: Turboshaft engine with a maximum and normal power rating of and a pressure ratio of 6:1; a geared engine that was initially selected to power the Army Chinook helicopter HC-1B (later designated as the CH-47A) in July 1958 by a joint Air Force/Army team
;T55-L-5: Turboshaft engine with a maximum and normal power rating of and a pressure ratio of 6:1; high-speed version of the T55-L-3 allowed for use on the Chinook instead of the geared YT55-L-3 engine due to August 1958 engine contract modification, with the reduction gearing now provided in the helicopter power transmission system instead of the engine; weight engine; first delivered for the Chinook in August 1960; powered first flight of the Chinook in October 1961; selected for the Curtiss-Wright X-19 tiltrotor aircraft in August 1962; 146 engines manufactured between 1960 and 1963 for the CH-47A
;T55-L-7: Turboshaft engine with a power rating of and a BSFC of ; completed 150-hour qualification test in September 1962 at a power rating;
;T55-L-7B: Military and normal power rating of ; used on the CH-47A
;T55-L-7C: Turboshaft engine with a maximum, military, and normal power rating of ; used on the CH-47B; BSFC of ; passed qualification testing in September 1966
;YT55-L-9: Turboprop engine with a power rating of , weight of , pressure ratio of 6.4:1, and a BSFC of ; used on the Rockwell YAT-28E; also powered Piper Enforcer prototype aircraft for flight tests in 1971 and 1983-1984
;T55-L-11: Turboshaft engine with a maximum, military, and normal power rating of ; used on the CH-47C; BSFC of ; completed 50-hour preliminary flight rating test (PFRT) in May 1967
;T55-L-712: turboshaft engine used on the CH-47D, with production starting in 1978; 849 engines manufactured by 1989
;T55-L-714: turboshaft engine used on the MH-47E Chinook SOF
;T55-GA-714A: turboshaft engine used on the CH-47F; low-rate initial production started in December 1997
;T55-L-714A
:5,000 shp (3,729 kW)
;T55-GA-714C: turboshaft engine to be tested on an CH-47F testbed aircraft, offering a 25 percent increase in power output and 10 percent reduction in fuel consumption compared to the T55-GA-714A; initial testing of the first engine began in November 2021
;T55-L-714C:6,000 shp (4,474 kW)
;T55-GA-715: A turboshaft engine upgrade kit proposed in 2008 for a growth version of the Chinook

;HTS7500

Applications

;T55/LTC4
* Bell 214
* Bell 309 KingCobra
* Boeing CH-47 Chinook
* Boeing Chinook (UK variants)
* Boeing Model 360
* Boeing RC-135 - One T55 was fitted to the RC-135E derivative to provide power to the aircraft's phased array radar.
* Curtiss-Wright X-19
* North American YAT-28E Trojan
* Piper PA-48 Enforcer
* Sikorsky–Boeing SB-1 Defiant
* unlimited hydroplanes

;HTS7500
* Sikorsky–Boeing SB-1 Defiant X

Specifications (T55-L-714A)

See also

References

Bibliography

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External links

Honeywell T55 page

{{aeroengine-specs

T55
T55
Mixed-compressor gas turbines
1950s turboshaft engines