The General Electric GE38 is a gas turbine developed by GE Aviation for turboprop and turboshaft applications. It is to power the Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion as the T408.
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Design and development
The GE27 was developed in the early 1980s under the "Modern Technology Demonstrator Engines" (MTDE) program sponsored by the United States Army Aviation Applied Technology Directorate. The GE27 was GE's unsuccessful submission to power the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey. The CFE CFE738 is based on this engine.
In the late 1980s, GE used the GE27 as the basis for its GE38 commercial engine development. The GE38 became the T407 turboprop in partnership with Lycoming Engines for the Lockheed P-7, with a maximum takeoff power of 6,000 shp (4,475 kW). The P-7 program was canceled in 1990, as was the engine. The commercial version of the T407 was the GLC38, which was unsuccessfully offered for several turboprop airliners in the early 1990s.
The new T408 (GE38-1B) is slated to power the new Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion three-engined helicopter for the US Marine Corps. It has a power rating of 7,500 shp. The GE38 completed its first round of ground testing in May 2010. Two test engines have completed over 1,000 hours of ground testing by November 2011. Five test engines will be used in the 5,000-hour test program. GE also offered the engine to power the US Navy's Ship-to-Shore Connector Air-cushioned landing craft.
Variants and applications
Specifications (T408)
Data from GE Aviation