Rolls-Royce Model 250, J35 engines; propeller blades add to AE display

Rolls-Royce Corp. has added to a display of one of the company’s Olympus engines by presenting to AE a Model 250 small turbine engine, a cut-away display of a J35 Allison Turbojet engine, and two Allison Aeroproducts propeller blades.

The new equipment joins the Olympus, once used on the supersonic Concorde airliner and available for public viewing over the past year in the basement of Talbot Laboratory on the Urbana campus.

Every day, students coming to the building for classes and labs will have hands-on exposure to the engines and equipment. The displays also can be featured in events such as Engineering Open House and other outreach activities that impact future engineers.

“We are very thankful for Rolls-Royce’s continued involvement with our Department,” said AE Department Head Philippe Geubelle. “Having access to these remarkable examples of aerospace technology might inspire future generations of students.”

The Model 250 is one of the most successful small turbine engines ever developed. Formerly the Allison 250, the Model 250 engine originally was designed to meet a military requirement for a 250-shaft horsepower (shp) turboshaft. It has since spawned a range of civil and military variants – including turboprops, missile engines and gensets – and today produces ratings in excess of 800 shaft horsepower.

Although a mature engine that has just passed its 50th birthday, the Model 250 remains a major force in the small turboshaft and turboprop market.

The J35 engine was built in the late 1940s and was the United States Air Force’s first axial flow turbojet. The propeller blades were used on the Lockheed C-130A aircraft from the mid 1950s until 2004.