In 1950, the Wright Aeronautical Corporation, a division of the Curtiss-Wright Corporation, entered the aircraft gas turbine business when its President Roy T. Hurley traveled to Britain and obtained licenses to manufacture and sell the Bristol Olympus turbojet and Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire turbojet in the U.S. Wright qualified the Sapphire as the military J65, and production began in 1952 and ended in 1957. A total of 10,023 J65 engines were built by Wright and Buick. It powered aircraft such as the Republic F-84 Thunderstreak and RF-84F Thunderflash, the Martin B-57A and RB-57B Canberra, the North American FJ-3 and FJ-4 Fury, Douglas A4D-1 Skyhawk, Grumman F-11 Tiger, and Chance-Vought Regulus missile.
This J65-W-16A artifact was removed from the museum's Douglas A-4C Skyhawk jet aircraft. A total of 1,288 J65-W-16A engines were built for the North American FJ-3 and FJ-4 between December 1955 and December 1958.
Display Status
This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Date
Circa 1960
Country of Origin
United States of America
Type
PROPULSION-Turbines (Jet)
Designer
Armstrong Siddeley
Manufacturer
Wright Aeronautical
Physical Description
Type: Turbojet
Thrust: 34,250 N (7,700 lb) at 8,300 rpm
Compressor: 13-stage axial-flow compressor
Combustor: Annular
Turbine: 2-stage axial-flow
Weight: 1,244 kg (2,742 lb)
Dimensions
Overall: 2750lb. (1247.4kg)
Other: 37 1/2 x 121 7/8in. (95.3 x 309.6cm)
Materials
Metal
Inventory Number
A19760757002
Credit Line
Transferred from the U.S. Navy
Data Source
National Air and Space Museum
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
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