Aviation Maintenance Terms beginning with U

UDF engine

Un-ducted Fan™. The trade name registered by General Electric for a type of ultra-high-bypass turbofan engine that drives one or more wide-blade propellers that have between eight and twelve blades. These blades, which are not enclosed in a duct or shroud, are very thin, have wide chords, and are highly swept back in a scimitar shape that enables them to power airplanes flying in the speed range near Mach 0.8.

UHB (ultra-high-bypass) engine

A turbine that drives a pair of ducted or un-ducted contrarotating propellers which have eight to 12 variable-pitch blades. These blades are very thin, have wide chords, and are swept back with a scimitar shape that allows them to power airplanes flying in the speed range of Mach 0.8. The blades are made of advanced composites for high strength and light weight. USH engines may be of either the tractor or pusher type, and have a bypass ratio in excess of 30:1.