Why the U.S. Air Force Just Awarded a $1.5 Billion Contract For the F-22’s Engines

American aerospace manufacturer and specialist in engine development Pratt & Whitney has been awarded a contract for up to $1.5 billion to provide continued sustainment for the F119 engines powering the U.S. Air Force’s F-22 fighter aircraft, with the three year agreement intended to enhance operational readiness of the more than 400 F119 engines which have been produced. The contract is expected to partly address two of the primary shortcomings of the F-22, namely its high operational costs and low availability rates, with new servicing by Pratt & Whitney set to lower the former and reduce the latter, although the degree to which this will be possible has been questioned repeatedly. With F119s having logged over 900,000 flight hours across more than 450,000 flight hours by twin engine F-22 fighters, the powerplants have also faced increasing wear, averaging over 2250 hours per engine. A central part of servicing will be the Usage Based Lifting program, which leverages real-time data to improve maintenance efficiency and extend the lifespan of the engines. President of Military Engines at Pratt & Whitney Jill Albertelli observed regarding the importance of the contract: “The F119’s readiness and reliability rates have never been more important, and we are improving both while lowering lifecycle costs. We are committed to helping our U.S. Air Force customers maintain the F-22’s combat edge.”

The F119 was the first powerplant to enter service for a fifth generation fighter, and after its first flights on the YF-22 and YF-23 technology demonstrator airframes in 1990 it joined the air force more than 15 years later when the first F-22s gained an Initial Operating Capability. Despite major delays, the engine lacked serious competition abroad at the time due to the disintegration of the Soviet Union and cancellation of work on the highly ambitious AL-41F engine. The F119 remains the only clean sheet fifth generation engine design in the Western world, with the F135 developed by Pratt & Whitney for the F-35 fighter being a close derivative of it. The contract for the F135 was awarded to the firm specifically due to its experience developing the F119.

The F119 is less advanced and has a lower thrust/weight ratio than newer fifth generation engines including the F135, the Chinese WS-15 and the Russian AL-51F. Compared to the F135, the F119’s architecture differed due to it being developed to accommodate flight for prolonged periods at high supersonic speeds and at high altitudes, with a significant difference being its use of a compressor with a higher aspect ratio to better handle the large amount of air needed at supersonic speeds and during rapid acceleration. This reflects the fact that F-35s were not designed with an emphasis on a high flight performance or to fly supersonically for significant periods, while by contrast the ability to fly supersonically without using afterburners – a capability known as supercruise – was a core requirement for the F-22 program.