General Electric began design work on the creation of a serial version of the XA100 adaptive engine for the F-35 fighter

General Electric has begun design work to create a production version of the XA100 adaptive engine. They

are being carried out after the US Air Force extended a contract with the manufacturer worth $203 million.

What is known

The US Air Force is investing millions of dollars to createengine with an adaptive cycle for the fifth-generation fighter F-35 Lightning II. The power plant is being developed under the Adaptive Engine Transition Program (AETP). It will replace the current F135 engine manufactured by Pratt & Whitney.

The service extended the contract with General Electric inend of last year. The Air Force provided the new funding after the company successfully tested the adaptive cycle engine last August.

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So far, there is no information about whetherAETP funding has been added to the Fiscal Year 2024 Defense Budget. US Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said last year that the project could cost more than $6 billion.

In parallel with General Electric, Pratt&amp; Whitney is also developing an adaptive cycle engine. It's called XA101. The work is being carried out as part of the Next Generation Adaptive Propulsion (NGAP) program. Pratt &amp; Whitney proposes to use the power plant exclusively in sixth-generation fighters, which are being developed under the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) project, and for the F-35 Lightning II, the F135 can be upgraded.

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Adaptive cycle engines will improveaircraft thrust and endurance. GE Edison Works spokesman David Tweedie claims that the XA100 will provide an opportunity to increase the range of a fighter by 30%. The company wants to integrate the new powerplant into the F-35 Lightning II by 2028. The XA100 engine is focused mainly on the F-35A and F-35C versions.