The General Electric F101 is an afterburning turbofan jet engine. It powers the Rockwell B-1 Lancer strategic bomber fleet of the USAF. In full afterburner it produces a thrust of more than 30,000 pounds-force (130 kN). The F101 was GE's first turbofan with an afterburner.[1]

F101
A General Electric F101 engine
Type Augmented High Bypass Turbofan engine
National origin United States
Manufacturer General Electric
First run early 1970s
Major applications Rockwell B-1 Lancer
Developed into General Electric F110
CFM International CFM56

Development

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The F101 was developed specifically for the Advanced Manned Strategic Aircraft, which became the B-1A. The F101 powered the four development aircraft from 1970 to 1981. The B-1A was officially cancelled in 1977. However the flight test program continued. General Electric was awarded a contract to further develop the F101-102 engine variant. This turbofan eventually powered the B-1B from 1984, entering service in 1986. The B-1's four F101 engines helped the aircraft win 61 world records for speed, time-to-climb, payload and range.

The GE F110 turbofan fighter jet engine is a derivative of the F101, designed using data from the F101-powered variant of the F-16 Fighting Falcon tested in the early 1980s.[2][3] The F101 also became the basis for the highly successful CFM56 series of civil turbofans.

Applications

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Specifications (F101-GE-102)

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Data from [4]

General characteristics

  • Type: Turbofan engine
  • Length: 181 in (460 cm)
  • Diameter: 55 in (140 cm)
  • Dry weight: 4,400 lb (2,000 kg)

Components

Performance

See also

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Related development

Comparable engines

Related lists

References

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  1. ^ GE's F101 web page Archived 2011-02-11 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Dabney, Thomas R.; Hirschberg, Michael J. (13–15 July 1998). "Engine wars – Competition for U.S. fighter engine production". 34th AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference and Exhibit. Cleveland, Ohio.
  3. ^ "F-16/101: Derivative Fighter Engine". F-16.net. Retrieved 24 May 2008.
  4. ^ Gas Turbine Engines. Aviation Week & Space Technology 2009 Source Book. p. 118.
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