Pratt & Whitney announced Nov. 23 that it has delivered the 400th F119 engine to the Air Force for the F-22 stealth fighter force. In a company release Nov. 23, Tyler Evans, Pratt’s F119 program director, said this delivery is “tangible proof of the maturity of this fifth-generation engine.” F119s have already accumulated more than 125,000 operational flight hours, he said. Two F119 engines power each F-22. Pratt is using the production and flight experience gleaned from the F119 as it matures the more powerful F135, a powerplant for the F-35 stealth fighter, that uses the F119’s core.
An Air Force C-17 transport jet recently tested a new technology that could help aviators stay on course even if the satellite-based Global Positioning System (GPS) that much of modern-day aviation relies on is compromised.