US Air Force and Pratt & Whitney modernized the F119 engines for the fifth aircraft
What is known
USAF and Pratt & Whitney had toupgrade all engines due to seven accidents caused by blade fatigue, the damage from which amounted to almost $23 million. Upgrade of power plants cost $21 million.
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After determining the cause of the malfunction, the US Air Force andPratt & Whitney agreed on a plan of action. The malfunction was resolved in record time. During the modernization, the Pentagon did not stop fighter flights. This was stated by Julie Ireland, director of the Pratt F119 engine program.
Despite record-breaking performancemodernization, we still do not know when exactly it was completed. Representative Pratt & Whitney says all work was completed ahead of schedule in December 2022. But Brian Brackens, a spokesman for the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at the U.S. Air Force, says they have been extended to May 2023.
F119 is a high temperature dual circuitengine with afterburner and thrust vector control. It was created on the basis of the F100, and later formed the basis of the F135 for the fifth generation fighter F-35 Lightning II.
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The power plant is capable of generating thrust almost103 kN. At the same time, afterburner thrust is more than 155 kN. The F119 engine allows the fifth-generation F-22 Raptor fighter to reach speeds of over 2,400 km/h (M=2.25).