Pratt & Whitney has been assigned an $870-million long-term contract by the U.S. Dept. of Defense, covering the TF33 engine, the powerplant for U.S. Air Force B-52 bombers and E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft.
The TF33 is the USAF designation for Pratt & Whitney’s JT3 turbofan commercial engine, first flown 60 years ago and has recorded over 72 million flight hours. More than 1,000 of the engines are in service today.
Through the Defense Logistics Agency, the engine builder will perform maintenance and update service for nearly 1,000 engines in service over a six-year period, with an option to extend for another four years. The services to be provided will include maintenance, spare parts, program management, field service, repairs, and engineering support.
The work will be centered at Tinker Air Force Base, Okla., additional USAF locations, and Pratt & Whitney's Southern Logistics Center located in Atlanta.
Pratt & Whitney describes the program as a first-of-its-type “holistic sustainment solution” that will reduce obsolescence and support the USAF’s wartime readiness into the foreseeable future.
"An engine's sustainment phase is a critical but often underappreciated portion of military readiness," stated Jill Albertelli, president of Pratt & Whitney Military Engines. "The TF33 enterprise is maturing beyond the conventional approach to a more complete, advance sustainment process that will maximize the TF33's support to many missions across the globe through 2050."
