9/11/2007 - EAST HARTFORD, CT. – Pratt & Whitney has qualified the F135 engine test cell at Patuxent River (Pax River) Naval Air Station in Maryland. Modifications of the existing engine test cell were required to handle the 40,000 pounds of thrust produced by the F135. Pratt & Whitney’s F135 propulsion system powers the F-35 Lightning II advanced military aircraft.

“By upgrading the Pax River test facility, we’ve added our third and final flight test center to perform carrier variant (CV) and short take-off/vertical landing (STOVL) propulsion system tests,” said Bill Gostic, vice president, Pratt & Whitney F135 engine programs. “We are excited to partner with the Department of the Navy in support of the F-35 Lightning II flight test program.”

The F135 engine has logged more than 8,400 system development and demonstration ground test hours and continues to power the F-35 Lightning II’s flight test program. Pratt & Whitney is the lead propulsion system supplier for the F-35 program. The technologically advanced F135 is an evolution of the highly successful F119 engine for the F-22 Raptor. By the time the F-35 enters operation in 2013, the F119 engines will have logged more than 584,000 flying hours and the F135 will have logged more than 16,000 flying hours.

Source: Pratt & Whitney Press Release