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Pratt & Whitney, part of aerospace and defence giant RTX, has successfully completed critical testing of its small turbofan engine family, paving the way for their integration into emerging Collaborative Combat Aircraft platforms.
The testing confirmed the company can deliver increased thrust from its existing production engines, originally developed for commercial aviation, to meet the demands of next-generation unmanned combat systems.
Pratt & Whitney said the engines – already recognised for their performance, reliability and efficiency – had been adapted to unlock additional capability. Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) platforms typically require compact, embedded engines to maximise manoeuvrability, range and operational flexibility.
Jill Albertelli, president of Pratt & Whitney’s military engines business, said the latest results highlighted the company’s ability to adapt proven designs to new missions.
“For unmanned applications, our commercial off-the-shelf engines can offer up to a 20 per cent increase in their qualified thrust capability,” Albertelli said.
“This means we can deliver increased performance from existing production engines, reducing both cost and weight across multiple applications.”
A second phase of testing is now underway, focusing on inlet airflow and pressure variations for engines embedded within the airframe. Distorted or interrupted airflow can affect engine performance and engineers are deliberately pushing those limits to capture data across a wide flight envelope.
These experiments are being run in parallel with a digital twin model, giving engineers predictive tools to manage risk and improve integration outcomes for future CCA designs.
Pratt & Whitney said the combination of physical and digital testing would ensure the propulsion solution meets cost, schedule and technical requirements while also providing confidence to program partners as CCA development accelerates.
