Long-EZ jet
Les Shockley
We now have available to experimental aircraft operators, our SHOCKWAVE 800+ turbojet engine.
We have developed an engine conversion that is ideal for airplanes as small as a Long-EZ and as large as a Velocity XL. The engine weighs just 300 pounds and is capable of producing up to 840 pounds of thrust without leaving the stock EGT limits for this engine. Further testing and development may increase these numbers. To prove the point, we delivered a 400 pound thrust engine for a powered parachute.
My personal air show airplane will be equipped with 2 afterburning models producing more than 1500 pounds of thrust each in a plane that weighs 1200 pounds! That's better than a 2 to 1 power to weight ratio.
The "SHOCKWAVE 800+" is built from a helicopter turbine, the same turbine used in the helicopter the president of the United States uses. It is called a General Electric T-58. I chose the Dash 8 model because of the mechanical fuel control and emergency back up operation in case of fuel control failure. These engines are known to be the most reliable and trouble free of the series.
We do not have hard figures as yet on fuel consumption, but will as testing will give us that info in about 3-4 weeks. The popular consensus is that the fuel burn will be around 50 GPH flat out at sea level. Remember you will be climbing at 5 - 7,000 FPM and will only use that power for a few minutes. We figure fuel burn at cruise to be around 30 GPH at 18,000 feet. We also run a deice system, for safety.
I have modified the engines and designed and built the exhaust pipe and "Bishops Hat" assembly for the engine. We have also designed and installed spun aluminum inlet housings. The combination of these mods has given the engine an additional 200+ pounds of thrust with no penalty in EGT and will actually help fuel burn by 20-25% by letting the engine run easier and with more airflow and less backpressure.
The price for the SHOCKWAVE 800+ is $30,000 US funds and a purchaser must sign a liability waver to Shockwave Powerplants, LLC.