After months of trials and several hundred light years the first engine in the new e-Core family, the Proton RM, has been cleared for operational service. Three Pentekonters have been using the engine for a number of months already as part of the development process and the rest of the fleet could receive the engine in an upgrade. The engine will also be part of the improved export Pentekonter Protector 2118.
Two versions of the engine have been produced, the RM-01 for export and the slightly uprated RM-02 for NS service.
Dr Forbidden gave a media briefing on Proton. The engine was very complicated and would generate some challenges for operational use. The target efficiency for Proton over the existing HS-760GX powerplant was to use "a third" less power. So far NS had managed to get it up to 28.6% but hoped that software refinement could improve that.
One interesting issue, Dr Forbidden said, was that Pentekonters with Proton now had a surplus of power, indeed one reactor too many. An NS Engineering chief said that a load balancing system was being developed to manage this and reduce wear and tear. This power surplus would not be so much of an issue on combat ships where the power could be used in weapons and other combat systems.
