Denver, CO (March 25, 2024) Beehive Industries, the additively-enabled jet propulsion company, today announced the successful completion of first fire tests for its 3D-printed engine demonstrator.
This engine is a high-efficiency, attritable engine designed for unmanned aerial defense vehicles such as cruise missiles, collaborative combat aircraft, and reconnaissance and contested resupply drones. As a demonstrator, it represents a future class of engines with thrust capacity ranging from 250 to 1,000 lbf and informs other thrust classes also in development. The design features 90% part consolidation, allowing a price approximately half that of traditionally developed engines.
First fire is a significant milestone in the development of any new jet engine, whereby the engine produces thrust for the first time as fuel is ignited within the system. It is the first in a series of tests to validate first engine performance known in the industry as FETT (first engine to test). Typically, it can take several years to reach this stage. At Beehive, it took only 16 months.
https://www.beehive-industries.com/news/post/beehive-industries-completes-first-fire-tests-for-3d-printed-jet-engine
