General Electric Company

The United States of America as Represented by the Administrator of the

James L Younghans

William Carl Ruehr

Daniel J Lahti

Edwin B Smith

An improved nacelle is provided for housing an aircraft engine and reducing aerodynamic drag during aircraft operation. In one embodiment, the nacelle houses a gas turbine engine and comprises a leading edge and a trailing edge, having a reference chord extending therebetween, and an outer surface which is continuous from the leading edge to the trailing edge. The outer surface includes a forward portion, an intermediate portion and an aft portion that has a profile defined by a varying thickness measured perpendicularly from the chord to the outer surface. The profile has a maximum thickness at the intersection of the forward and intermediate portions, which intersection is located greater than about 36% of the chord from the leading edge, and is effective for increasing laminar flow over the nacelle for reducing aerodynamic drag.

Laminar flow necelle

An inlet for a gas turbine engine is disposed about a curved centerline for the purpose of accepting intake air that is flowing at an angle to engine centerline and progressively turning that intake airflow along a curved path into alignment with the engine. This curved inlet is intended for use in under-the-wing locations and similar regions where airflow direction is altered by aerodynamic characteristics of the airplane. By curving the inlet, aerodynamic loss and acoustic generation and emission are decreased.

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Cincinnati, OH, United States of America

James L Younghans