Measured Far-Field Flight Noise of a Counterrotation Turboprop at Cruise Conditions

Modern high speed propeller (advanced turboprop) aircraft are expected to operate on 50 to 60 percent less fuel than the 1980 vintage turbofan fleet while at the same time matching the flight speed and performance of those aircraft. Counterrotation turboprop engines offer additional fuel savings by means of upstream propeller swirl recovery. This paper presents acoustic sideline results for a full-scale counterrotation turboprop engine at cruise conditions. The engine was installed on a Boeing 727 aircraft in place of the right-side turbofan engine. Acoustic data were taken from an instrumented Learjet chase plane. Sideline acoustic results are presented for 0.50 and 0.72 Mach cruise conditions. A scale model of the engine propeller was tested in a wind tunnel at 0.72 Mach cruise conditions. The model data were adjusted to flight acquisition conditions and were in general agreement with the flight results.