Boeing Chinook Projects

Let's not forget that Chinooks still fly with a symmetrical airfoil that could need to be replaced to get use of all that extra power (50% more). Otherwise engine swap won't affect positively any perfs, except, probably, fuel consumption.
(the last rotor modernisation brought only minor improvements)
 
yasotay said:
The CH-47Z will be silently sailing around on anti-grav in 2120.
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You think small. Historical documents from the future show that the Chinook will still be in service well past the year 3000.

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Would there be an advantage to replacing the rotor system with one with more blades?
 
TomcatViP said:
Let's not forget that Chinooks still fly with a symmetrical airfoil that could need to be replaced to get use of all that extra power (50% more). Otherwise engine swap won't affect positively any perfs, except, probably, fuel consumption.
(the last rotor modernisation brought only minor improvements)
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Are you saying the fuselage shape should change? If so the whole helicopter should be replaced w/ one of the sleek designs boeing has shown before.
 
jsport said:
TomcatViP said:
Let's not forget that Chinooks still fly with a symmetrical airfoil that could need to be replaced to get use of all that extra power (50% more). Otherwise engine swap won't affect positively any perfs, except, probably, fuel consumption.
(the last rotor modernisation brought only minor improvements)
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Are you saying the fuselage shape should change? If so the whole helicopter should be replaced w/ one of the sleek designs boeing has shown before.
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I was more thinking at the blades of the rotors that still have a Naca symmetrical airfoil. With such power increase, the only way that it could be of any use is if the blades are flown at an increased pitch. With adapted blades, that would not be the case given that a proper redesign is done.
 
The ACH-47 "Armed/Armored Chinook was always proof positive that the Chinook was too small to support armed insertion of troops into hostile LZs. One could not supress hostile fire and still carry troops. One had to make a choice.
 
iv seen mention of a possible ASW. variant of CH-47 (also mentioned in UK. sources), did this get beyond musing to actual studies or brochure proposal ?

cheers, Joe
 
Reported problem with the new composite blades:

According to the report, Chinook aircrews reported prolonged fatigue and other physiological conditions due to excessive vibrations following a developmental test flight using the redesigned ACRB’s.

The Pentagon’s chief weapons tester stated that initial ARCB designs were stable but did not provide the power improvements predicted by computational models.
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https://defence-blog.com/news/army/...ntial-risk-with-chinook-new-rotor-blades.html
 
More vibration. This is why the Army needs Chinook II! For a small fee Boeing will redesign the rotor-head to eliminate (most) of the vibration. Why build a new rotor when you can build a whole new helicopter! FYI the Chinook fleet is the newest in the Army inventory as most of the old Vietnam refurbished aircraft have been replaced.
 
Not surprising that the UK is looking to renew the fleet. Hard to argue with success. I am led to believe the Chinook fleet is still working a very high tempo, in less than great environments. Given that the US is coming to an end of production, it would not surprise me if the UK does not get a pretty good deal on new Chinooks to keep the Philadelphia plant running.
 

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“We’re working closely with the Army on a mitigation system or an adjustment to existing mitigation systems to account for that different vibration frequency,” Builta said. “It is in no way a safety of flight risk, but it is an issue that needs to be addressed going forward.”


Fixes could include adjustment to dampeners to identify the different vibration frequencies that need to be dampened out, Builta said, or adding additional dampeners.
“This is a low-risk, well-known activity that we’ve done across multiple platforms,” he noted.
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Regrettable to see that they are still in the "could do or not" phase nearly 4 months after the info went public.

https://www.defensenews.com/land/20...t-tests-boeing-hopes-for-production-contract/Also
https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/first-newbuild-ch-47f-helo-arrives-in-netherlands
 
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14 new Chinook for UK:
A letter from the UK’s embassy in Washington obtained by Bloomberg confirmed the plans to acquire the 14 new helicopters reading that it served as an “acknowledgement that the UKG wishes to extend its Chinook Vertical Heavy Lift capability by proceeding with the acquisition of quantity fourteen (14) new build Chinook H-47(ER) helicopters,”
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https://www.scramble.nl/military-news/raf-chinook-deal
https://www.army-technology.com/news/uk-set-to-buy-14-new-chinooks-for-1-4bn/
 
https://www.flightglobal.com/helico...turboshaft-is-feasible-us-army/143578.article
The US Army believes it is feasible to upgrade its fleet of Boeing CH-47 Chinooks with the GE Aviation T408 turboshaft engine.

That is the service’s conclusion after seven months of flight testing the more powerful engine on the cargo helicopter. The US Army is scheduled to conduct the last flight demonstration of the CH-47 with the T408 on 26 May at Fort Eustis in Virginia, Roger Kuykendall, project manager of advanced turbine engines for the US Army, said on 30 April.
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TomcatViP said:
https://www.flightglobal.com/helico...turboshaft-is-feasible-us-army/143578.article
The US Army believes it is feasible to upgrade its fleet of Boeing CH-47 Chinooks with the GE Aviation T408 turboshaft engine.

That is the service’s conclusion after seven months of flight testing the more powerful engine on the cargo helicopter. The US Army is scheduled to conduct the last flight demonstration of the CH-47 with the T408 on 26 May at Fort Eustis in Virginia, Roger Kuykendall, project manager of advanced turbine engines for the US Army, said on 30 April.
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Now all it has to do is compete with all the other budget lines.
 
TomcatViP said:
14 new Chinook for UK:
A letter from the UK’s embassy in Washington obtained by Bloomberg confirmed the plans to acquire the 14 new helicopters reading that it served as an “acknowledgement that the UKG wishes to extend its Chinook Vertical Heavy Lift capability by proceeding with the acquisition of quantity fourteen (14) new build Chinook H-47(ER) helicopters,”
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https://www.scramble.nl/military-news/raf-chinook-deal
https://www.army-technology.com/news/uk-set-to-buy-14-new-chinooks-for-1-4bn/
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Update

https://www.raf.mod.uk/news/article...U_FQCEElzQFOt5IR6MJ-mJs8GOAN3EdmkSoqxcnnGqwSs
A £1.4 billion contract to modernise the Chinook fleet over the next 10 years has been agreed. The deal will see British forces benefit from 14 of the latest iconic heavy-lift helicopters.

Proven in battle and operated in every major conflict since the Falklands War, the Chinook is a highly-versatile aircraft. The helicopter can operate in a diverse range of environments, from the desert to the arctic, and transport up to 55 personnel or ten tonnes of cargo.

With a top speed of 300 kilometres per hour, the new H-47(ER) aircraft will have a range of new capabilities, including:

- an advanced digital cockpit
- a modernised airframe to increase stability and improve survivability
- a digital automatic flight control system to allow pilots to hover in areas of limited visibility

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “From assisting emergency repairs to UK flood defences, providing vital logistics support during COVID-19 to its warfighting role on Afghan battlefields, the Chinook has been the workhorse of the Armed Forces for over 40 years. The cutting edge H-47 (ER) will be at the forefront of our specialist requirements in dealing with threats and logistic support. Our £1.4 billion investment will mean we will be one of very few air forces with this capability.”

Full story: https://bit.ly/2QaFcKg
 
But so far, no confirmation that the power increase has resulted to any meaningful payload augmentation.
That's all the problem faced by the Chinook program and where everyone expect now some kind of improvements. Otherwise there is no point of increasing engine power if the rotor system can't absorb it.
So, if the improvement are consequent (better Gearbox and reduced fuel consumption), the increase of power is of no use so far.
 
the US State Department approved the sale of four Boeing CH-47F Chinook helicopters to Australia, which will bring the Australian Army’s Chinook fleet to fourteen if the contract goes ahead. The proposed sale is a major boost for Australian Army aviation and for Boeing, which counts half a dozen Chinook customers in the Asia-Pacific, with several more being eyed.

The US State Department said the possible Foreign Military Sale to Australia of CH-47F helicopters and related equipment from US Army stock is worth an estimated US $259 million. The contract includes four F model helicopters, eight T55-GA-714A engines and avionics systems as well as five AN/AAR-57 Common Missile Warning Systems (CMWS). Compared to earlier Chinooks, the F model has a revised airframe, an upgraded Honeywell Aerospace T55-GA714A engine, corrosion protection, a digital automatic flight control system, a Common Missile Warning System and a glass cockpit. Some F models also have the Cargo On/Off Loading System (COOLS), which puts rollers into the Chinook’s floor.
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https://asiapacificdefencereporter....-for-australia-as-boeing-eyes-regional-sales/
 
The Gnome Chinook was not the only version proposed by Boeing-Vertol to meet the Air Ministry's ASR.358.

The company offered a CH-47A fitted with two General Electric 2,60shp T64-GE-6 turboshafts both to West Germany and the UK in mid-1964.
The T64 was rotated inwards by 10 degrees which moved the nacelle closer to the fuselage and improved access for maintenance.
It looks as though a study was also made using the T64-GE-53 rated at 3,045shp, which I think was a paper engine and the first of the 3,000shp T64 designs. BV also indicated that GE were working on a future 3,300shp model.

Boeing-Vertol and GE seemed to have in mind a deal whereby Bristol Siddeley would build 40% of the T64 under licence for German Chinooks, hoping the Admiralty would lessen its engine-out requirements and accept two T64s instead of four Gnome H.1600s (neither dream became reality).

By mid-1964, India, Italy and Japan had all received proposals from Boeing-Vertol for the CH-47A (Australia had ordered in 1962 but cancelled due to budget issues) - all three eventually becoming buyers after a number of years.
 
PHILADELPHIA, June 22, 2021 — U.S. Special Operations Command awarded Boeing [NYSE: BA] a $578 million Foreign Military Sales contract approved by the U.S. Department of State to deliver 14 H-47 extended-range Chinook helicopters to the UK Royal Air Force (RAF).
https://boeing.mediaroom.com/news-releases-statements?item=130882
 
A significant upgrade to the UK Chinook fleet. The capabilities of the MH-47G are exceedingly impressive.
 

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