By Scott Gwilliam, product manager for JetAire and JetPower® products, JBT AeroTech, Jetway®
As one might imagine, environmental extremes in the Middle East have a significant impact on the operation of air conditioners. The environmental factors, combined with a tremendous amount of heat generated by today’s sophisticated avionics and aircraft electronics, require the military to use reliable pre-conditioned air units to cool aircraft during ground operations so systems are operational and ready for deployment.
“Air conditioning is a critical ground support asset in the war effort and various other missions in the Middle East,” says Dale Sumpter, general manager for JBT AeroTech’ Jetway® business unit. “The harsh environment in the Middle East has taken a toll on equipment, and much of it has worn out faster than expected. We are pleased to have been selected to provide the USAF with the first JBT AeroTech air conditioning units that are specifically designed for military applications.”
Military application of proven commercial products
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The TMAC was put through rigorous testing
to ensure it will hold up in the harsh
environments where it is used by the USAF. |
The TMAC and DAC systems are based on the latest technology used in JetAire air conditioners from JBT AeroTech. These units are used at airports throughout the world to cool all types of commercial and military aircraft during ground operations and maintenance. The military units are trailer-mounted so they can be connected to an aircraft anywhere on the airfield and allow ground support personnel to shut down an aircraft’s auxiliary power unit (APU).
“We successfully leveraged our experience in designing, manufacturing and supporting large commercial ground support air conditioners to meet the needs of the USAF and help it reduce costs,” says Steve Nestel, military program manager for JBT AeroTech. “In the TMAC and DAC, we were able to provide the USAF with units that perform over a broad range of temperature and humidity extremes, guaranteeing their operational effectiveness. We also focused on reliability, which over the unit’s life cycle will increase operational availability and reduce total cost of ownership.”
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The TMAC’s long system life and high reliability improve operational
availability and reduce total cost of ownership |
Many JBT AeroTech air conditioners in operation today are used in maintenance hangars, where units average 96 hours of continuous operation during a workweek and up to 3,500 hours during a single year. More than 2,000 JetAire air conditioners have operated for more than 9 million hours during the last 12 years. Several of these systems have performed in excess of 20,000 hours of operation without needing a rebuild.
The USAF also will realize savings related to reduced APU burn time. By using a JetAire air conditioner, an operator can shut down the APU after connecting to the pre-conditioned air unit, thus reducing energy consumption significantly over what an APU would consume. Also, the DAC unit produces significantly less emissions, pollution and noise than an APU.
"In addition to supplying Halvorsen loaders, tow tractors and deicing technology to the USAF, JBT AeroTech also provides proven, reliable ground support products, logistics and engineering support services that meet its most rigorous and demanding conditions,” Sumpter says. “We realize that TMAC and DAC are critical military aircraft ground support assets and are using all of our resources to make sure we exceed the USAF’s demanding expectations.”
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