EVENDALE, Ohio, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- Rolls-Royce and U.S. company GE's engine development partnership announced they have achieved a milestone on the new F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft engine.
GE and British company Rolls-Royce have teamed to develop the F136 engine for the F-35 Lightning II, a multirole strike fighter aircraft. The GE Rolls-Royce fighter engine team has begun testing its first production-configuration F136 engine.
The first production-configuration development is one month ahead of the contract schedule, marking a milestone for the GE and Rolls-Royce team.
"This is our biggest milestone yet," Mark Rhodes, senior vice president of the fighter engine team, said in a statement.
"Once again, the F136 team delivered on time and on budget. With a significant temperature margin and affordable growth built into the design, the F136 will offer outstanding value."
Officials say additional F136 engine builds are scheduled to begin testing by January 2010.
