USAF Eyeing New Props and Upgraded Engines To Breathe Extra Life Into Old C-130Hs - C-130H 2.jpg ...

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...."Since 2008, the 92-1536 has served as test bed for a number of proposed
modifications to more than 130 other H-series aircraft still in service across
the Air National Guard. The aircraft now has three particularly significant sets
of improvements.

"The new propellers vibrate less and make less noise and the aircraft gains
increased thrust at equivalent engine torque settings, in turn improving fuel
efficiency. A built-in balancing system reduces the need for ground crews to
balance the prop manually at regular intervals and fewer vibrations mean less
stress on the aircraft as a whole, further reducing the need for maintenance. As
an added bonus, the NP2000 is a modular design that takes up less storage space
in warehouses or room inside any aircraft, ship, or vehicle delivering spares to
established bases or deployed locations.

"On top of that, the updated aircraft has an electronic propeller control
system, or EPCS, that makes the units more responsive when the crew rapidly
advances the throttle. This Air National Guard says this improves the overall
reliability of the propellers by approximately 50 percent and removes a safety
issue that had contributed to previous mishaps.

"The latest addition to 92-1536 is four Rolls-Royce T-56 Series 3.5 turboprop
engines that are more fuel efficient and reliable, saving an estimated $250,000
dollars every year on the cost to operate each aircraft, according to the
manufacturer's website.





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