Search Results

The process of designing a Vapor Cycle System (VCS) for a fighter aircraft is a difficult and continuous challenge. Besides the constant efforts to optimize size, weight and package is the need to provide a highly reliable, producible and easily maintained system. In particular is the need to make the vapor compression system highly hermetic and intensely rugged. This paper updates the 1982 SAE paper entitled “Environmental Control of an Aircraft Pod Mounted Electronics System” (820869). Specifically it details the design, production and field results of the LANTIRN Environmental Control Unit (ECU). Since 1986 over 1000 of these systems have been fielded. The ECU has proven to be reliable in spite of the difficult environment, which has included combat duty. This paper will give insight into the LANTIRN pod thermal management system, the design of the ECU subsystem, and packaging.