Nilgiri
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@Nilgiri
This is your domain professional part. You think P&W will share engine tech not necessarily F135 but other engines as well.
Subsequent percentile level of technology will be exponentially higher in cost than the previous percentile.
With Kaveri I would say we are about at the 90th percentile. The remaining 10% to get the best performance possible (with todays frontier envelope) on MTBO (mean time between overhaul) and LLC (long term lifecycle costs) will be exponentially higher in cost given the amount of RnD companies that have it had to invest in getting it....and the fact only a few have done this (suppliers market).
This old paper has a summary of what I am talking about here, even though its somewhat an old paper , the same basic issues apply:
https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/notes/2007/N1337.pdf
I cannot give exact numbers on overall percentile standings at this given moment (its somewhat subjective anyway) but here is a relative analysis:
Russian engines frontier is not as advanced as western (esp big 3). Chinese are aggressively trying to get to the Russian frontier through RnD iterations....and then continue from there. Its not easy task without injections from someone that has already trod the path and is pushing past even further today (i.e to catch up means you have to qualitatively and quantitatively conduct RnD and related production side implementation and feedback cycles in greater amount than the industry leaders just to make up the distance).
Thus it is definitely advisable for India to go for a foreign collaboration in pushing through this last 10% frontier and beyond (as frontier expands).
My relative ranking of the overall frontier level as it stands now would be:
GE > PW > RollsRoyce,Safran >>>>Russians>>Chinese,Indian
(Its an overall opinion, PW does lead GE in a few things, but I would say GE is ahead overall on some very crucial things like passive cooling geometries and also the level of tech and detail they have in say oil lines for lubrication)
Where India specifically lags the Chinese though is the implementation and feedback to get to 95% percentile. This is where any of the companies ahead of it can help. The further ahead they are, the more avenues they will have available which provide better hedging on stuff like creep mitigation, cooling geometries and design, combustion flows (my area of expertise), specific optimised metallurgy etc.
I am unsure if @zebra7 and others interested have read these threads, but they should be worthwhile to expand a bit on the subject. I can then answer any specific questions people may have:
https://defence.pk/threads/kaveri-n...130-kn-thrust-class-at-gtre-bangalore.445244/
https://defence.pk/threads/iaf-to-take-final-call-on-amca’s-engine-drdo-chief.438008/
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