The Repair and Overhaul of Gas Turbines: Some Notes on the Organization and Facilities Used in the Maintenance of Jet Engines

IT was generally believed during early servicing experience of gas turbines that nearly every defect could result in power losses, but the last eight years have provided operational experience which has helped in the design, and improvements have made the gas turbine a trouble‐free and comparatively reliable unit. There are still defects which may arise, but it can safely be stated that they have no bearing on the power output. The customary teething troubles of early days have been overcome and power units are now available having an overhaul life of 500 hours. This figure is being increased rapidly and in the near future, the engine life between overhauls may exceed 1,000 hours. The overhaul of an engine provides an engine with a complete life cycle and the engine goes out into service embodied with improved design details, thus making it more reliable than before. The overhaul procedure consists of stripping, washing, crack testing, inspection, building and testing the engine, and a brief comment on each has been made in these notes, supported by a typical overhaul shop layout. The gas turbine power plant operating costs consist of primary and overhead charges, but in our discussion the overhead charges pertaining to overhaul will not be considered. These notes are a generalization of a variety of gas turbines and do not relate to any particular design.