WASHINGTON – While Rolls-Royce has completed a successful flight test of its new engine upgrade for the V-22, it is unclear whether the US Marine Corps will pursue a re-engine plan.
Company officials have said they are replacing all older turbines with the turbine at the core of the improved engine. The company said its goal is to have the Marines adopt the new engine.
Marine Corps headquarters said in a statement Sept. 17 that there is no plan to re-engine the V-22 at present.
“However, given budgetary pressures, the program is continually investigating ways to reduce the lifecycle costs of the aircraft,” the statement reads. “It is prudent to investigate alternatives to existing systems and the engine is no exception.”
Analyst Richard Aboulafia of the Teal Group interpreted the Marine Corps’ comment as putting pressure on Rolls.
“When you’re in a sole-source situation and you’re not happy with the price of spares and durability of spares, the best way to put pressure on the contractor is to imply that there could be competition in the future,” Aboulafia said. “If [Rolls] could somehow combine lower cost with higher performance, that might be something [the Marine Corps] would really want, but on the other hand, it’s not clear that’s what’s going on here.”
Company officials say the test, conducted in New Mexico this summer, met expectations of a 17 percent engine power increase. That will enable the Osprey to fly at 6,000 feet in 95 degree temperatures, thus allowing V-22 operations in regions such as the Middle East.
The Rolls AE 1107C engine powers the V-22s across the services. The US Air Force’s fleet of CV-22s are used for special operations missions. The US Marine Corps’ MV-22 has two variants, the B and C models, which are used in the transportation of troops and equipment. ■
Aaron Mehta contributed to this report.
