Rolls-Royce announced on Tuesday it’s wrapped testing of a new aircraft engine compressor at an Air Force Research Lab facility in Dayton, Ohio. The company is maturing this technology under AFRL’s Highly Energy Efficient Turbine Engine program. The testing validated the compressor design, and the compressor achieved the highest pressure ratio ever demonstrated at the facility, states the company’s July 9 release. “The advanced compressor technology can be applied to future transport, patrol, and [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance] applications,” said Mark Wilson, chief operating officer of Rolls-Royce LibertyWorks, the company’s cutting-edge research shop. “The advanced technology will help meet the future needs of the US military by increasing range and persistence, while reducing fuel consumption,” he said. HEETE is focused on improving the next-generation of high-performance, subsonic military aircraft engines.
The Air Force is moving forward with a new, algorithm-driven system to help U.S. Northern Command better detect airborne threats. NORTHCOM and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, which are tasked with protecting the homeland from attack, depend on a slew of radars and other data systems to monitor U.S.…