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Pratt & Whitney T34

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T34 Turbo-Wasp
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 origin United States
Manufacturer Pratt & Whitney
First run ca. 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.

Design and development

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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

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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

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The experimental Douglas YC-124B Globemaster II powered by four Pratt & Whitney YT-34-P-6 turboprops
Lockheed R7V-2 Constellation

Engines on display

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Specifications (T34-P-3)

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

General characteristics

  • Type: Turboprop
  • Length: 156.8 in (3,983 mm)
  • Diameter: 33.75 in (857 mm)
  • Dry weight: 2,590 lb (1,175 kg)

Components

  • Compressor: 13-stage axial compressor
  • Combustors: annular combustion chamber with eight flame tubes
  • Turbine: three-stage axial-flow
  • Fuel type: JP-4
  • Oil system: closed circuit

Performance

See also

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Related development

Comparable engines

Related lists

References

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  1. ^ warbird registry.org - B-17G/44-85734; Retrieved 6/21/11
  2. ^ a b Flight Global: 1952 Archive
  3. ^ a b 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. ^ a b alternatewars.com - YC-97 Characteristics Summary; Retrieved 10/12/11
  6. ^ a b 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. ^ a b 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. ^ a b Engine History: NASM Storage
  12. ^ Taylor 1961, pp. 513–515.
  • Gunston, Bill (2006). World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines, 5th Edition. Phoenix Mill, Gloucestershire, England, UK: Sutton Publishing Limited. p. 79. ISBN 0-7509-4479-X.
  • Taylor, John W. R. (1961). Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1961–62. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Company.
  • Breffort, Dominique (2006). Lockheed Constellation: from Excalibur to Starliner Civilian and Military Variants. Paris: Histoire and Collecions. p. 176. ISBN 2-915239-62-2.
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