Pratt & Whitney has delivered its final Conventional Take Off and Landing/Carrier Variant (CTOL/CV) F135 flight test engine to the F-35 Joint Program Office, marking another major milestone as the program transitions from System Development and Demonstration to production.  Pratt & Whitney is a United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX) company.

"I am tremendously proud of the Pratt & Whitney F135 team who has worked so tirelessly over the last eight years, in partnership with the F-35 Joint Program Office and Lockheed Martin, to get to this significant point in the F135 program," said Warren Boley, Vice President of F135 Engine Programs. "This final CTOL/CV F135 engine delivery is another demonstration of the continued maturing of this engine program, which has logged more than 12,850 test hours and will begin production engine deliveries later this month."

Pratt & Whitney has delivered 17 flight test engines and expects to deliver the final Short Take Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) flight test engine early this year.

"What makes this milestone even more exciting is that it signifies a transition from development activity to production, as we are poised to deliver our first production CTOL/CV F135 engine within several days of delivering this final CTOL flight test engine," Boley said. "We are proud to continue successfully powering the F-35 Lightning II flight test program, and our eyes are also trained on the day when our first production F135 CTOL engine will be installed in a production F-35 and delivered to our military men and women."

Pratt & Whitney has designed, developed and tested the F135 to deliver the most advanced fifth generation fighter engine for the U.S. Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy, as well as eight international partner countries.  The F135 is derived from proven technology of the only operational fifth generation fighter engine, the Pratt & Whitney F119.  It has been further enhanced with technologies developed in several Air Force and Navy technology programs.

The F135 is the only engine powering the F-35 Lightning II flight test program.  The F135 propulsion system has proven it can meet diverse aircraft requirements, and the ground and flight test experience demonstrates the maturity and the associated reliability of the F135 engine for armed forces around the world.