South Korea has given competing engine manufacturers General Electric and Snecma until 16 August to submit their final proposals for the powerplant of the planned Samsung/Lockheed Martin KTX-II advanced trainer/light combat aircraft.
The Government and KTX-II prime contractor Samsung are planning to complete the evaluation and make a final selection on the engine by late September. The decision appears to be primarily a Korean one, with Lockheed Martin officially staying neutral.
Preliminary design work on the KTX-II has been based around a single 71kN (16,000lb)-thrust class turbofan. The aircraft is intended to have a supersonic performance, with a maximum speed in the range of Mach 1.4 and a service ceiling of up to 45,000ft (13,700m).
GE is proposing a variant of its F404-402, along with single-engine control redundancy modifications, similar to those fitted to the F404/RM12 powering the Saab JAS39 Gripen fighter. Options include a single-channel full-authority digital engine-control (FADEC) with hydro-mechanical back-up, or a dual-channel FADEC system.
South Korea is also being given the added option of later upgrading the engine to the more powerful F414 developed for the new McDonnell Douglas F-18E/F.
The KTX-II design will include the provision for larger side air inlets to take the improved engine.
Snecma's offer is based on a derivative of the M88-2 developed to power the Dassault Rafale. The company has said previously that it would be prepared to offer South Korea co-production of the proposed M88-2K, if it is selected for the tandem-seat aircraft.
The US Department of Defense, in the meantime, is to begin the process of notifying Congress at the end of August of the proposed sale of technology to South Korea, and US industrial participation in the programme. The issue of technology transfer and the sale of KTX-IIs to third countries has often been a sticking point in US-Korean talks.
Source: Flight International
