Wright Electric has developed a 30 kW electric ground power unit for the U.S. Air Force’s Blue Horizons Project Dynamo. According to the company, the compact generator is half the weight and volume of standard Department of Defense units.
The Air Force wants to make its support equipment as light and lean as possible to give more flexibility in anticipated conflicts in which it has to operate in territory where it does not have tactical superiority. In these circumstances, aircraft may have to land and leave sites very quickly under what it refers to as the Agile Combat Employment concept of operations.
Wright Electric has devised what it calls the Efficient Stacking Design, which allows up to 12 of the Project Dynamo generators to fit into a standard 463L cargo. Typically, only two commercial off-the-shelf units will fit.
The generator produces standard AC output as well as DC power to charge batteries. Using its inverter architecture, it can spin down during low loads, which reduces maintenance due to wet stacking.
Wright Electric CEO Jeff Engler told AIN the first of the Project Dynamo generators was recently delivered to Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama, where it was tested as part of an evaluation process in May. The company will be making some upgrades to the system based on feedback from the Air Force.
“Light and lean is a major priority for Agile Combat Employment for the U.S. Air Force,” said Lt Col Michael Askegren. “This is a dual-use technology that could also be a huge benefit to humanitarian aid and disaster relief operations like the one we saw after Hurricane Michael at Tyndall AFB and we’re seeing now after Typhoon Mawar in Guam. Helping the Air Force to reduce its power generation footprint will support future missions around the world.”