EAST HARTFORD, Conn., May 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pratt & Whitney received a statement of qualification for the F135 short-takeoff/vertical-landing (STOVL) propulsion system from the F-35 Joint Program Office. This statement certifies Pratt & Whitney's F135-PW-600 STOVL propulsion system for up-and-away flight operations. Pratt & Whitney is a United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) company.

"This certification letter is a step on the critical path to flying the aircraft and brings us closer to powering the first flight of the F-35 Lightning II STOVL variant this spring," said Bill Gostic, Pratt & Whitney vice president, F135 engine programs.

The F135-PW-600 STOVL propulsion system includes lift system components designed by Rolls-Royce and integrated into the STOVL propulsion system by Pratt & Whitney.

This milestone is one of many recent achievements for Pratt & Whitney's F135 propulsion system. The F135 has previously completed sea level testing and accelerated mission testing for endurance and durability qualification. The F135 has exceeded 9,800 test hours in the system development and demonstration ground test program and the conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) engine continues to power the F-35 Lightning II flight test program with 40 flights and more than 49 flight test hours to date.

Rated at more than 40,000 pounds of thrust, the F135 is the most powerful fighter engine ever built. The technologically advanced F135 is an evolution of the highly successful F119 engine for the F-22 Raptor. By the time the F-35 enters operation in 2013, the F119 engines will have logged more than 600,000 flight hours and the F135 will have completed more than 16,000 flight hours. These achievements will provide maturity and the associated reliability to the F135 engine.

Pratt & Whitney is a world leader in the design, manufacture and service of aircraft engines, space propulsion systems and industrial gas turbines. United Technologies, based in Hartford, Conn., is a diversified company providing high technology products and services to the global aerospace and building industries.

    Stephanie Duvall                     Jennifer Whitlow
    Pratt & Whitney Military Engines     Pratt & Whitney
    860.557.1382                         860.565.9600
    stephanie.duvall@pw.utc.com          jennifer.whitlow@pw.utc.com