Pratt & Whitney Immediately Upgrades F-35 Engine to Block 4.
December 26, 2022.
by Rajes Saragih.
The F135 Engine Core (ECU) upgrade for the F-35 Lightning II wins $75 million more in funding in the fiscal 2023 omnibus appropriation bill, further confirming congressional support for engine modernization, according to the Pratt & Whitney website on December 23, 2022. Jen Latka , vice president of the F135 program at Pratt & Whitney, stated, “If our services and allies want an F-35 with Block 4 capabilities by the end of the decade, the engine needs a fundamental overhaul. “Thanks to the help we have from Congress and Chairman DeLauro's leadership, the enhanced machine will be field-ready by 2028,”
The ECU from Pratt & Whitney is a single solution for upgrading the F-35 propulsion compatible with all F-35 models. This will deliver $40 billion in life cycle cost savings by avoiding disruptive and costly air vehicle upgrades and by leveraging existing sustainability infrastructure. “ Since production began, Pratt & Whitney has reduced the price of the F135 engine by fifty percent, and over the years, the engine has exceeded its original performance standards by twofold.
