Comments on the Development of the Early Westinghouse Turbojets, 1941-1946

The early thinking leading to the American Turbojet engine is reviewed. This included ideas pertaining to ramjets and rockets, and culminated in the axial flow turbojet engine concept. The role of the NACA Subcommittee on Jet Propulsion under the leadership of Dr. W. F. Durand is stressed. Early problems with the new engine are mentioned, including flame tube light-off, interconnecting tubes, and fuel injection problems. An early major design innovation was the change to a single annular combustion chamber, replacing the 24 cans. This change culminated in the 19XB engine. The purposes of this paper are to show the magnitude of the problems encountered, and to give credit to the many dedicated persons who made the American Axial Flow Turbojet Engine a success.