Pratt & Whitney T34

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T34 Turbo-Wasp
Pratt-Whitney T-34 B-17 testbed NAN10-50.jpg
A B-17 Flying Fortress testbed for the T-34 turboprop engine. This aircraft was later flown on airshow circuits as the Liberty Belle . [1]
Type Turboprop
National originUnited States
Manufacturer Pratt & Whitney
First runca. 1950
Major applications Douglas C-133 Cargomaster

The Pratt & Whitney T34 (company designation PT2 Turbo-Wasp [2] ) was an American axial flow [2] turboprop engine designed and built by Pratt & Whitney. Its only major application was on the Douglas C-133 Cargomaster.

Contents

Design and development

In 1945, the United States Navy funded the development of a turboprop engine. The T34 was produced from 1951 to 1960, but never used in U.S. Navy aircraft production. [3]

The YT34 engine with three wide-bladed propellers was made for two Navy Lockheed R7V-2 Constellation (C-121s) variants, for testing. Flight tests were on 1 September 1954. [4]

In September 1950, a testbed Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress flew with a T34 turboprop mounted in the nose of the bomber. The first application for the T34 was the Boeing YC-97J Stratofreighter, which later became the Aero Spacelines Super Guppy. The next application for the engine was the Douglas C-133 Cargomaster. [3]

Variants

The Douglas C-133 Cargomaster was the largest aircraft to use the T34. Douglas C-133A Cargomaster in flight.jpg
The Douglas C-133 Cargomaster was the largest aircraft to use the T34.
T34-P-1
5,700 shp (4,300 kW) equivalent.
T34-P-2
Similar to -1.
T34-P-3
6,000 shp (4,500 kW) equivalent.
YT34-P-5
5,229 shp (3,899 kW) equivalent [5]
T34-P-6
5,531 shp (4,124 kW) equivalent [6]
T34-P-7
T34-P-7W
7,100 shp (5,300 kW) equivalent, w/water injection
T34-P-9W
7,500 shp (5,600 kW) equivalent, w/water injection
T34-P-12
YT34-P-12A
5,500 shp (4,100 kW) equivalent [7]
PT2F-1
5,500 shp (4,100 kW) equivalent, unbuilt civilian version planned to power the Lockheed L-1249B. [8]
PT2G-3
5,600 shp (4,200 kW) equivalent, unbuilt civilian version planned to power the Lockheed L-1449 and possibly the L-1549. [8]

Applications

The experimental Douglas YC-124B Globemaster II powered by four Pratt & Whitney YT-34-P-6 turboprops YC-124 Globemaster II 1954.jpg
The experimental Douglas YC-124B Globemaster II powered by four Pratt & Whitney YT-34-P-6 turboprops
Lockheed R7V-2 Constellation Lockheed R7V-2 turboprop Connie in flight c1953.jpeg
Lockheed R7V-2 Constellation

Engines on display

Specifications (T34-P-3)

Data fromJane's All The World's Aircraft 1961–62. [12]

General characteristics

Components

Performance

See also

Related development

Comparable engines

Related lists

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. warbird registry.org - B-17G/44-85734; Retrieved 6/21/11
  2. 1 2 Flight Global: 1952 Archive
  3. 1 2 Pratt&Whitney: T34 Turboprop [ permanent dead link ]
  4. Google Books: Lockheed secret projects:Inside the Skunk Works By Dennis R. Jenkins; p.28-29
  5. 1 2 alternatewars.com - YC-97 Characteristics Summary; Retrieved 10/12/11
  6. 1 2 alternatewars.com - YC-121F Charactaristics Summary; Retrieved 11/6/11
  7. Breffort, Dominique. Lockheed Constellation: from Excalibur to Starliner Civilian and Military Variants. Paris: Histoire and Collecions, 2006. p. 134
  8. 1 2 Breffort, Dominique. Lockheed Constellation: from Excalibur to Starliner Civilian and Military Variants. Histoire and Collecions, 2006. p. 113
  9. US War Plane: Post WWII Aircraft Engine Guide
  10. Breffort, Dominique. Lockheed Constellation: from Excalibur to Starliner Civilian and Military Variants. Paris: Histoire and Collecions, 2006. Print. ISBN   2-915239-62-2
  11. 1 2 Engine History: NASM Storage
  12. Taylor 1961, pp. 513–515.