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Pratt & Whitney Military Engines will unveil later this year an upgrade program for the F100 engine on the F-16 and F-15 fighters that draws upon technology employed in both the F117 and F135 programs for the F-22 and F-35, respectively.
The F100-PW-229 Engine Enhancement Package "does one thing very well: It moves scheduled depot induction from a typical eight-year cycle to a 12-year cycle," said Bill Gostic, who heads Pratt's mature F-100 and F-117 (C-17) programs, during a briefing at the Paris Air Show. "We've made a step function change in durability that provides significant cost-of-ownership advantages over other fourth-generation engines."
The company also offered updates on several of its other programs, via briefings from: P&W Military Engines president Tom Farmer; fifth-generation-engine head Warren Boley; and business development manager Bill Begert.
For the F-35 program, Pratt has completed 84 flights of the engine for the conventional takeoff and landing aircraft. A total of 115 hours have been flown on the F-135, it's gone to 38,000 feet and has conducted air starts, according to Boley.
The engine destined for the short takeoff and vertical landing version of the F-35 has amassed 15 flights, 14 hours, been flown to 30,000 feet and experienced max takeoff, he said.
Pratt is also involved in a number of new-development programs. The first flight of the General Atomics Predator C (Avenger) occurred last April with a PW545 engine. In addition, the initial flight of the Northrop Grumman X-47 Pegasus unmanned combat air vehicle is schedule for November with an F-100-PW-220U.
On the helicopter side, Pratt has teamed with Honeywell under the umbrella of the Advanced Turbine Engine Co. in the competition to re-engine Blackhawk and Apache helicopters with a new 3,000 shaft horsepower engine. The HPW3000 is scheduled for first run in 2011, with a downselect planned for 2013.
"This program is a Pratt & Whitney Military activity," said Farmer, who conceded that Pratt & Whitney Military Engines does not have a long history in Army Aviation. "Pratt & Whitney Canada (which typically makes helicopter engines) will not be involved."
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