July 27, F-35C first catapult launch!

**wabpilot** · 29 Jul 11,, 11:47

Here's a video of the first catapult launch of the F-35C at Lakehurst NAS. ‪First F-35C catapult launch‬&rlm; - YouTube

**ace16807** · 29 Jul 11,, 12:54

One step closer to getting them operating off carriers. Any word when they will begin arrested landing tests?

**Chogy** · 29 Jul 11,, 14:32

Outstanding! I noticed they left the gear hanging, probably to check the castings and struts for stress damage.

Very nice to see this.

**looking4NSFS** · 29 Jul 11,, 17:58

Does the difference between a cat launch on land vs. one off a moving carrier make much of a difference in how the plane is set up? I would think the differences are minor at the level of activity we are witnessing with a cat launch, but everything at sea does come with an increased level of complexity.

**citanon** · 29 Jul 11,, 21:26

I'm surprised that the test pilot is a Lieutenant.

**YellowFever** · 29 Jul 11,, 22:10

I haven't kept up with the development of the JSF so let me apologize for this question:

What happened to the vertical landing version?

And how will the sea/water affect the RAM coating? More maintenance?

**wabpilot** · 29 Jul 11,, 22:26

Sea launches, no cross wind, land cat launch there is a possibility of a cross wind. Sea launches have little room for error, land launches a bit more. Land launches, if you lose an engine, a landing straight ahead on the remaining runway is possible from a very low level, at sea, no possibility of landing. (Although any power loss in a single usually means a bail out.)

The Bravo is going to sea this fall. There are engine temperature issues to work out before that happens. Presently, the Bravo is flying at Pax River.

**Phoenix10** · 30 Jul 11,, 00:49

Originally Posted by YellowFever

I haven't kept up with the development of the JSF so let me apologize for this question:

What happened to the vertical landing version?

And how will the sea/water affect the RAM coating? More maintenance?

The version in the video is the F-35C (Carrier Version). The Short Take Off Vertical Landing (STOVL) version is the F-35B. Both have been completing a lot of test points in recent months. The F-35B will not be able to take off via catapult. When it comes to carriers, the F-35B will only be used on carriers of the ski jump variety. For an updated on testing of all 3 variants here are a couple good sites with news, pictures, and video:

Home: Code One Magazine

The Official Website of the F-35 Lightning II

**wabpilot** · 30 Jul 11,, 19:06

Two Bravos (F-35B) will go aboard Wasp this fall for their first deck suitability trials. Exhaust gas temperature remains an issue. On the AV-8B we used chilled fuel. Between now and when the Bravos fly to Wasp, we are going to try chilled fuel to tame the exhaust gas temperatures.

**Red Seven** · 31 Jul 11,, 13:15

It's always nice when things work well the first time. Especially when they will end up costing $300-billion.

**highsea** · 03 Aug 11,, 02:00

Originally Posted by wabpilot

Two Bravos (F-35B) will go aboard Wasp this fall for their first deck suitability trials. Exhaust gas temperature remains an issue. On the AV-8B we used chilled fuel. Between now and when the Bravos fly to Wasp, we are going to try chilled fuel to tame the exhaust gas temperatures.

On the F402-RR-406 they inject water into the combustion chamber and turbine on takeoff to keep things cool. I'm thinking about the inlet temps on the F135, it runs considerably hotter than the F402.

It's always about those inlet temps. Gotta run hot to make the power.

It doesn't seem like chilling the fuel will reduce the exhaust temperatures that much, I don't know. From what I can tell, F402 exhaust temps are about 1200 deg F vs. about 1700 deg F on the F135. That's quite a bit.

You've also got a much higher pressure ratio in the F135, which translates to a higher exhaust speed.

Higher temp, higher jet velocity, nozzle closer to the ground, one nozzle vs. two...

**Chunder** · 05 Aug 11,, 16:56

Originally Posted by highsea

On the F402-RR-406 they inject water into the combustion chamber and turbine on takeoff to keep things cool. I'm thinking about the inlet temps on the F135, it runs considerably hotter than the F402.

It's always about those inlet temps. Gotta run hot to make the power.

It doesn't seem like chilling the fuel will reduce the exhaust temperatures that much, I don't know. From what I can tell, F402 exhaust temps are about 1200 deg F vs. about 1700 deg F on the F135. That's quite a bit.

You've also got a much higher pressure ratio in the F135, which translates to a higher exhaust speed.

Higher temp, higher jet velocity, nozzle closer to the ground, one nozzle vs. two...

I was under the impression that water injection cools the air, making it more dense, producing more power for a given heat....

At least, thats what those GG & GH books told me...

**highsea** · 05 Aug 11,, 18:29

Originally Posted by Chunder

I was under the impression that water injection cools the air, making it more dense, producing more power for a given heat....

At least, thats what those GG & GH books told me...

That's another way of saying the same thing. You have to let the engine spool up to get the power. Absent the water, the heat will melt the turbine blades. The higher the ambient temps, the faster the heating. The water tank is small, something like 50 gallons. Just enough for takeoff and landing operations close to the deck.

On the F135B, the lift fan pulls power off the engine, which according to Pratt takes about 200 deg F out of the exhaust temp. So in theory it would be about 1500 deg F hitting the deck. The IPP also exhausts downward on the B variant, the nozzle is being redesigned from round to oval in an effort to reduce the deck heating from the IPP.

The Marines say the Harrier exhaust temp is 1470 deg F. That doesn't agree with what I have read on the F402, but I am inclined to take their word over what I read on the internet.

30 degrees isn't much, but the type of jet stream is very different among the two aircraft. It's much more concentrated and faster moving in the F-35.

As Wabpilot says, chiller trailers may do the trick. We'll have to see. Another option would be to run cooling pipes under the deck, but that would be a pretty expensive retrofit to the fleet.