Fighter Engine Team

Program Overview

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With a proven record of exceptional performance, the GE Rolls-Royce Fighter Engine Team is powering ahead with its F136 engine program for the Joint Strike Fighter program.

The JSF F-35 Lightning II is a next-generation, multi-role stealth aircraft designed to replace the AV-8B Harrier, A-10, F-16, F/A-18 Hornet and the United Kingdom’s Harrier GR.7 and Sea Harrier. All of those aircraft are currently powered by GE or Rolls-Royce, making the companies the engine providers of choice for the U.S. and U.K. militaries. Potential F-35 production for the U.S. Air Force, Navy, Marines and international customers, including the UK Royal Air Force and Royal Navy, may reach as many as 5000 to 6000 aircraft over the next 30 years for the Joint Strike Fighter program.

The F136 will be fully interchangeable for all versions of the F-35. The F136 was the first F-35 engine to offer a single engine configuration: Short Take Off, Vertical Landing (STOVL) for the U.S. Marine Corps and U.K. Royal Navy; Conventional Takeoff and Landing (CTOL) for the U.S. Air Force and most international partners; and the Carrier Variant (CV) for the U.S. Navy.

Testing Success; Milestones Reached

The GE Rolls-Royce Fighter Engine Team has successfully reached several important milestones for the F136 program. These include completion of Critical Design Review, and completion of high-altitude afterburner tests at a US Air Force test facility.

Critical Design Review included several months of intensive review of the unique design of the engine. The US Government has approved and validated the engine design, allowing production of demonstration engines to move forward.

The high-altitude afterburner testing program was successfully completed at the US Air Force Arnold Engineering Development Center, including common exhaust hardware for the F-35 Lightning II aircraft. All test objectives were reached as planned.

The F136 employs the most advanced, proven technologies, and the design – which is optimized for the F-35 Lightning II – will provide affordable growth and lower maintenance costs. The F136 will benefit the F-35 program with affordable technology and drive down costs.

On Schedule, Funded for 2009

The F136 engine program remains on schedule and within budget and is funded by the US Government for FY 2009. More than 50 percent of the System Development and Demonstration funding for the engine has already been appropriated and the US Government has invested more than $2 Billion in the engine's development.

Meanwhile, testing on two prototype F136 engines has totaled more than 700 hours of test time, significantly reducing risks for the program. The first full engine in production configuration is scheduled to begin testing by early 2009, with first flight in the F-35 to follow in 2010. The first production F136 engines are scheduled to be delivered in 2012 for the F-35 Lightning II aircraft, very early in the overall aircraft production program.

About 900 engineers and technicians are engaged in the F136 program at GE Aviation’s Cincinnati, Ohio, headquarters, and at Rolls-Royce facilities. GE Aviation, with responsibility for 60 percent of the F136 program, is developing the core compressor and coupled high-pressure/low-pressure turbine system components, controls and accessories, and the augmentor (afterburner). Rolls-Royce, with 40 percent of the F136 program, is responsible for the front fan, combustor, high pressure turbine nozzle, stages 2 and 3 of the low-pressure turbine, and gearboxes.

International participant countries are also contributing to the F136 through involvement in engine development, component manufacturing and knowledge programs.