GE F404
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The General Electric F404 and F412 are a family of
afterburning An afterburner (or reheat in British English) is an additional combustion component used on some jet engines, mostly those on military aircraft, military supersonic aircraft. Its purpose is to increase thrust, usually for supersonic flight, ta ...
turbofan A turbofan or fanjet is a type of airbreathing jet engine that is widely used in aircraft engine, aircraft propulsion. The word "turbofan" is a combination of references to the preceding generation engine technology of the turbojet and the add ...
engines in the class (static thrust). The series is produced by
GE Aerospace General Electric Company, doing business as GE Aerospace, is an American aircraft engine supplier that is headquartered in Evendale, Ohio, outside Cincinnati. It is the legal successor to the original General Electric Company founded in 1892, w ...
. Partners include
Volvo Aero Volvo Aero was a Swedish aircraft engine, aircraft, guided missiles and rocket engine manufacturer. It became ''GKN Aerospace Engine Systems'' following the company's acquisition by British engineering conglomerate GKN during 2012. It was ori ...
, which builds the RM12 variant. The F404 was developed into the larger F414 turbofan, as well as the experimental GE36 civil
propfan A propfan, also called an open rotor engine, open fan engine is an aircraft engine combining features of turbofans and turboprops. It uses advanced, curved propeller blades without a ducted fan, duct. Propfans aim to combine the speed capabili ...
.


Design and development


F404

GE developed the F404 for the
F/A-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather supersonic, twinjet, twin-engine, carrier-based aircraft, carrier-capable, Multirole combat aircraft, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a Fighter aircraft, fighter and attack airc ...
, shortly after losing the competition for the
F-15 Eagle The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is an American twin-engine, all-weather fighter aircraft designed by McDonnell Douglas (now part of Boeing). Following reviews of proposals, the United States Air Force (USAF) selected McDonnell Douglas's des ...
's engine to
Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney is an American aerospace manufacturer with global service operations. It is a subsidiary of RTX Corporation (formerly Raytheon Technologies). Pratt & Whitney's aircraft engines are widely used in both civil aviation (especially ...
, and losing the Lightweight Fighter (LWF) competition to the
Pratt & Whitney F100 The Pratt & Whitney F100 (company designation JTF22) is a low bypass afterburner, afterburning turbofan engine. It was designed and manufactured by Pratt & Whitney to power the U.S. Air Force's "FX" initiative in 1965, which became the McDonnell ...
powered YF-16. For the F/A-18, GE based the F404 on the YJ101 engine they had developed for the
Northrop YF-17 The Northrop YF-17 (nicknamed "Cobra") is a prototype lightweight fighter aircraft designed by Northrop aviation for the United States Air Force's Lightweight Fighter (LWF) technology evaluation program. The LWF was initiated because many in ...
, enlarging the bypass ratio from 0.20 to 0.34 to enable higher fuel efficiency. The engine consists of a three-staged fan, seven axial stage compressor arrangement, single stage low and high pressure turbines, an augmentor, and produces maximum thrust of 16,000 lbf (71.2 kN) in the original F404-GE-400 model. The engine was designed with a higher priority on reliability than performance. Cost was the main goal in the design of the engine. GE also analyzed "throttle profiles" and found that pilots were changing throttle settings far more often than engineers previously expected, putting undue stress on the engines. GE also sought with the F404 a design that would avoid compressor stalls and other engine failures, and would respond quickly to control inputs; a common complaint of pilots converting from propeller planes to jets was that early turbojets were not responsive to changes in thrust input. GE executives Frederick A. Larson and Paul Setts also set the goal that the new engine would be smaller than the F-4's GE J79, but provide at least as much thrust, and cost half as much as the P&W F100 engine for the F-16. Due to a fan designed to smooth airflow before it enters the compressor, the F404 has high resistance to
compressor stall A compressor stall is a local disruption of the airflow in the compressor of a gas turbine or turbocharger. A stall that results in the complete disruption of the airflow through the compressor is referred to as a compressor surge. The severity o ...
s, even at high angles of attack. It requires less than two shop visits per 1,000 flight hours and averages 6,500 hours between in-flight events. It also demonstrates high responsiveness to control inputs, spooling from idle to full afterburner in 4 seconds. The engine contains an in-flight engine condition monitoring system (IECMS) that monitors for critical malfunctions and keeps track of parts lifetimes.Jenkins 2000, p. 144. GE developed the F110 for the Air Force as an alternative to the
Pratt & Whitney F100 The Pratt & Whitney F100 (company designation JTF22) is a low bypass afterburner, afterburning turbofan engine. It was designed and manufactured by Pratt & Whitney to power the U.S. Air Force's "FX" initiative in 1965, which became the McDonnell ...
for use on the F-16 and F-15 based on the F101 and used F404 technology. The F110 was derived from the F101 via the F101DFE, though some elements of the F404 such as the design of the fan, albeit enlarged, were incorporated, per the F110 page and other sources. GE developed the F404-GE-402 in response to a Swiss requirement for more power in its F/A-18 version; it produces a maximum of 17,700 lbf (78.7 kN) of thrust with afterburner. The new engine version was used on Kuwaiti Hornets, later U.S. C and D Hornets, and subsequent Hornets.Jenkins 2000, pp. 62–63, 93, 97. The
KAI T-50 Golden Eagle The KAI T-50 Golden Eagle () is the first South Korean supersonic advanced jet trainer, light combat aircraft, and light strike-fighter developed by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) with Lockheed Martin. It is South Korea's first indigenous ...
uses a single General Electric F404-GE-102 turbofan engine with
Full Authority Digital Engine Control A full authority digital engine (or electronics) control (FADEC) is a system consisting of a digital computer, called an "electronic engine controller" (EEC) or "engine control unit" (ECU), and its related accessories that control all aspects of ai ...
(FADEC) system; the engine is similar to the F404-402, but with additional redundancies built in for single-engine operations. The aircraft has a maximum speed of Mach 1.5. The General Electric F404-GE-103 is the latest derivative of the F404 engine family, developed for use in advanced trainer and light combat aircraft. It was originally developed for the Boeing T-7A Red Hawk, and is also used in the
Turkish Aerospace Turkish Aerospace Industries Inc. (, TAI or TUSAŞ) is a state-owned Arms industry, arms company in Turkey. History On 16 August 1925 the Turkish Aircraft and Engine Limited Company ''()'' factory was founded in Kayseri, Turkey. The company ...
Hürjet. The -103 variant includes safety features tailored for single-engine operations and incorporates a Full Authority Digital Electronic Control (FADEC) system derived from the GE F414 engine. Almost 4,000 F404 engines power the F/A-18 Hornets in service worldwide. The F404 engine family had totaled over 12 million flight hours by 2010.


F404-GE-IN20

For the
HAL Tejas The HAL Tejas () is an Indian single-engine, delta wing, Multirole combat aircraft, multirole Military aircraft, combat aircraft designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for t ...
, GE developed an uprated F404-IN20, which is the highest thrust variant in F404 family, and which produces a maximum of 19,000 lbf (85 kN) of thrust with afterburner. It incorporates latest hot section materials and technologies as well as a
FADEC A full authority digital engine (or electronics) control (FADEC) is a system consisting of a digital computer, called an "electronic engine controller" (EEC) or " engine control unit" (ECU), and its related accessories that control all aspects of a ...
system for reliable power and performance. General Electric had been collaborating with
Aeronautical Development Agency The Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), under the Department of Defence Research and Development (DR&D) of India's Ministry of Defence, was established in Bangalore in 1984 to oversee the development of the India's Light Combat Aircraft (LCA ...
(ADA) for the Tejas programme since 1980s while the engine variant was chosen to power the jets in 2004. India bought 10 F404-F2J3 which is used on 2 technology demonstrators and 6 prototypes of the Tejas in early 2000s. Two deals for 17 and 24 engines for powering LSP (including Naval prototypes) and Mk 1 IOC variants of Tejas was signed in 2004 and 2007, respectively. As of September 2024, 75 engines (including F2J3 and IN20 variants) have been delivered to India. Deliveries of the engines were completed between 2008 and 2016. On 17 August 2021, India signed a contract with GE worth to supply 99 F404 engines and service support by 2029. However, General Electric had closed down the production line of F404-IN20 engines without further prospects of orders from India and the first engine was yet to be delivered as of October 2024 leading to the subsequent delivery delays of HAL Tejas Mk1A to the
Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 Octob ...
. First engine delivery dates were delayed to September 2024 as of then. Following the orders a lengthy process of sorting out supply chain problems was undertaken and the production line at
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
restarted by late 2024 to enable deliveries after a stagnation of 5 years. The first F404-GE-IN20 engine was finally delivered to India on 25 March 2025 following a delay of two years from the expected timelines.


F412

GE developed the F404 into the F412-GE-400 non-afterburning turbofan for the
McDonnell Douglas A-12 Avenger II The General Dynamics/McDonnell Douglas A-12 Avenger II was a proposed American attack aircraft from General Dynamics and McDonnell Douglas. It was to be an all-weather, carrier-based stealth bomber replacement for the Grumman A-6 Intruder in ...
. After the cancellation of the A-12, the research was directed toward an engine for the Super Hornet, which evolved into the F414.


Applications

;F404 *
Boeing Phantom Ray The Boeing Phantom Ray is an American demonstration stealth unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) developed by Boeing. The autonomous Phantom Ray is a flying wing around the size of a conventional fighter jet, and first flew in April 2011. It will ...
* Boeing X-45C *
Boeing–Saab T-7 Red Hawk The Boeing–Saab T-7 Red Hawk, initially known as the Boeing T-X (later Boeing–Saab T-X), is an American–Swedish transonic advanced jet trainer produced by Boeing with Saab AB, Saab. In September 2018, the United States Air Force (USAF) se ...
*
FMA SAIA 90 The FMA SAIA 90 was a cancelled air superiority fighter aircraft project, designed by the FMA ( Fábrica Militar de Aviones) with the collaboration of Dornier in the mid-1980s. The SAIA 90 was the last stage of the ACA (Avión Caza Argentino) p ...
(as designed, not built) * Dassault Rafale A (prototype only) *
Grumman A-6F Intruder II The Grumman A-6 Intruder is a twinjet all-weather subsonic attack aircraft developed and manufactured by American aircraft company Grumman Aerospace. It was formerly operated by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. The A-6 was designed in ...
*
Grumman X-29 The Grumman X-29 is an American experimental aircraft that tested a forward-swept wing, canard control surfaces, and other novel aircraft technologies. Funded by NASA, the United States Air Force and DARPA, the X-29 was developed by Grumman, a ...
* HAL Tejas Mk 1/1A *
Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk The Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk is an officially retired American single-seat, subsonic, twin-engined, stealth attack aircraft developed by Lockheed's secretive Skunk Works division and operated by the United States Air Force (USAF). It was ...
*
KAI T-50 Golden Eagle The KAI T-50 Golden Eagle () is the first South Korean supersonic advanced jet trainer, light combat aircraft, and light strike-fighter developed by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) with Lockheed Martin. It is South Korea's first indigenous ...
*
McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather supersonic, twinjet, twin-engine, carrier-based aircraft, carrier-capable, Multirole combat aircraft, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a Fighter aircraft, fighter and attack airc ...
(A-D) *
Northrop F-20 Tigershark The Northrop F-20 Tigershark (initially F-5G) is a prototype light fighter, designed and built by Northrop Corporation, Northrop. Its development began in 1975 as a further evolution of Northrop's Northrop F-5, F-5E Tiger II, featuring a new ...
*
Scaled Composites Model 400 The T-X program is a United States Air Force development and acquisition program for a new two-seat jet trainer to replace the Northrop T-38 Talon. On 27 September 2018, the US Air Force selected the Boeing/Saab T-X entry to become its traine ...
* Rockwell-MBB X-31 *
ST Aerospace A-4SU Super Skyhawk The ST Aerospace A-4SU Super Skyhawk is a major upgrade project of the Douglas A-4S Skyhawk attack aircraft undertaken by Singapore Aircraft Industries (SAI, now ST Aerospace) in the 1980s. It was used exclusively by the Republic of Singapo ...
*
TAI Hürjet The TAI Hürjet (named after Vecihi Hürkuş) is a single-engine, tandem seat, supersonic advanced jet trainer and light combat aircraft, under development by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI). The first prototype made its first flight on 25 A ...
;F412 *
McDonnell Douglas A-12 Avenger II The General Dynamics/McDonnell Douglas A-12 Avenger II was a proposed American attack aircraft from General Dynamics and McDonnell Douglas. It was to be an all-weather, carrier-based stealth bomber replacement for the Grumman A-6 Intruder in ...
(as designed, not built)


Specifications (F404-GE-402)


See also


References

* Jenkins, Dennis R. ''F/A-18 Hornet: A Navy Success Story''. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2000. .


External links


GE Aviation F404 page


{{US military gas turbine aeroengines Low-bypass turbofan engines
F404 The General Electric F404 and F412 are a family of afterburning turbofan engines in the class (static thrust). The series is produced by GE Aerospace. Partners include Volvo Aero, which builds the RM12 variant. The F404 was developed into the l ...
1970s turbofan engines