Volvo Aero Military Engines - Fighter Aircraft Engine Systems

Volvo Aero has a wide-range of operations within the aerospace industry. Volvo Aero develops, manufactures and maintains military jet engines. The main product is the Volvo RM12 engine for the Gripen fighter. Our company also develops and manufactures advanced components within its commercial specialization for military engines in partnership with most of the major engine manufacturers.

Volvo Aero headquarters are located in Trollhattan, Sweden with subsidiary companies in Kongsberg, Norway and Boca Raton, USA.

RM12 JET ENGINE POWERING THE GRIPEN FIGHTER

The Swedish fighter Gripen is powered by a single Volvo RM12 engine. It is based on a General Electric F404 engine from which it has been developed to single engine safety criteria, higher performance and higher resistance to bird strikes. The primary objective during development of the Gripen/RM12 system was to attain the highest possible operational effectiveness at the most favorable life-cycle cost. The Gripen's first flight took place in 1988 and the aircraft has been in service with the Swedish Air Force since 1997.

BUSINESS SOLUTIONS

Volvo Aero offers custom-tailored solutions for initial sales as well as for aftermarket business. The company has the expertise and resources to surpass practically every customer requirement such as fleet management, maintenance management, spares and spare parts management, engine services etc.

MILITARY ENGINE PRODUCT SUPPORT

Volvo Aero has a long experience of supporting military engines and can offer a complete range of services including: maintenance, repair and overhaul for the engines and the accessories; integrated logstic support; technical product support; spare and spare parts management; technical publications; training; ground support equipment; field service support; and facilities specifications etc.

PRODUCT SUPPORT SYSTEMS - ENGINE CONDITIONING AND MAINTENANCE GROUND SUPPORT

The latest product support system is based on advanced Engine Condition Monitoring (ECMS) and Maintenance Ground Support (MGSS) for effective data collection and handling.

Volvo Aero has many years experience of flight operations and engine data from test runs which now can be used in our latest IT systems for cost effective maintenance and high availability.

ENGINE COMPONENT PRODUCTION

Volvo Aero develops and manufactures advanced components within its commercial specialization for military engines such as the F414 engine for the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighter, the F100 and F110 engines for the F16 fighter and the F117 engine for the C-17 transport aircraft. Volvo Aero has specialized in the complex structures and rotating parts of an engine. The company strategy is to operate as an independent component partner in selected areas, with all the major engine manufacturers.

DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

The RM12 engine has the built-in potential for a future midlife update program.

In the meantime the engine is continuously undergoing development for lowering the cost of ownership and/or increasing the performance. Introduced developments already in service have been the FADEC control system and a new afterburner flameholder. The original flameholder was identified as a driver for the support cost. A new radial flameholder was developed by Volvo Aero and gave a great improvement in life and consequently a significant reduction of life cycle cost.

A program for qualifing the flameholder for use in the F404 engine has successfully been carried out. Several F404 users have shown great interest in the new design.

ENGINEERING SERVICES

Volvo Aero has a sharp focus on engineering and technology and we take design responsibilty as well as offering engineering resources. Our engine test cells can be used for both Static and RAM testing.