Louis Chênevert retired in 2014 after a celebrated career in the aeronautics industry. After beginning his career at General Motors, he joined Pratt & Whitney Canada, where he served as executive vice president, operations, from 1993 to 1996. In 1999, he was named president of Pratt & Whitney, a position he held until 2006. He became COO and a director of United Technologies Corporation (UTC), Pratt & Whitney’s parent company, before being named CEO in 2008 and chairman in 2010.
The Pratt & Whitney F135 Engine
One of Mr. Chênevert’s major achievements at Pratt & Whitney and UTC was his leadership of the development and production of the Pratt & Whitney F135 engine. This turbofan jet engine was designed to power the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, a single-engine stealth strike fighter developed by the Joint Strike Fighter program.
The most powerful fighter jet engine ever produced, the F135 generates more than 40,000 pounds of thrust and enables the F-35’s horizontal and vertical flight. It operates under extremely high temperatures and allows the F-35 to travel at top speeds of 1,200 miles per hour (Mach 1.6).
Pratt & Whitney won the contract for development of the F135 in 2001. The first F-35, powered by the F135, flew in 2006. Pratt & Whitney delivered the first production F135 engine in 2009. Today, the F135 still powers the entire F-35 fleet—including the F-35A, F-35B, and F-35C variants—for the Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force, as well as 20 American allies.
Award-Winning Design
During Mr. Chênevert’s time at the helm of Pratt & Whitney, a team led by the company won the National Aeronautic Association’s Collier Trophy, one of the most prestigious industry awards, in 2002 for the development of the Integrated Lift Fan Propulsion System on the F-35B.
Pratt & Whitney had previously won the Collier Award, which recognizes “the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America, which has been thoroughly demonstrated by actual use during the preceding year,” in 1952 for the development of the J57 turbojet for the Boeing B-52 bomber. Pratt & Whitney had also been part of Collier Award-winning teams in 1970, for the JT9D on the Boeing 747; 1975, for the F100 engine on the F-16 fighter; 1994, for the F117 engine on the C-17 airlifter; and 1995, for the PW4084 on the Boeing 777.
Upon receiving the award for the company, Mr. Chênevert stated, “The Integrated Lift Fan Propulsion System was truly a team effort of the best in aviation with outstanding leadership by the Joint Strike Fighter Program Office. Years of painstaking work have now led to a unique propulsion system that will help the F-35 take its place among the premier combat aircraft in the world.”
Sole Source Position
After Mr. Chênevert advanced from Pratt & Whitney to leadership of its parent company, UTC, he continued to champion the F135 engine, understanding its importance as a future cornerstone of the US defense aerospace industry.
In the early 2000s, at the same time Pratt & Whitney was developing the F135, the US Department of Defense (DoD) was also funding development of an alternate engine for the F-35: General Electric and Rolls Royce’s F136. DoD did not request funding for the F136 for several years beginning in 2006, though Congress continued it.
Ultimately, Pratt & Whitney secured the sole source supplier position for the F-35 in 2011. The DoD officially ended its contract with General Electric and the F135 became the only powerplant for all three versions (F-35A, F-35B, F-35C) of the new stealth fighter jet. Also in 2011, Japan became the 13th customer of the F-35—another vote of confidence for the F135. Mr. Chênevert was named Person of the Year by Aviation Week as well.
Landmark Achievement in Aviation
A noteworthy demonstration of the F135 engine’s capabilities occurred in 2010. Lockheed Martin announced that, for the first time, the F-35B had achieved a vertical landing, utilizing 41,000 pounds of downward thrust to land the supersonic fighter jet on a 95-foot landing pad.
“Today’s vertical landing…showed that we have the thrust and the control to maneuver accurately both in free air and in the descent through ground effect,” said F-35 lead pilot Graham Tomlinson. Tomlinson had taken the aircraft through a 93 mph short takeoff from Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland, hovered 150 feet above the airfield for a minute, and then performed a controlled vertical landing, demonstrating the full short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) capabilities of the F-35B variant.
The STOVL F-35B has gone on to become a cornerstone of the US Marine Corps fleet and is also used by Italy and the United Kingdom. It can achieve speeds of Mach 1.6 while carrying a full internal payload, while also enjoying the ability to perform short takeoffs from smaller decks, bases with limited space, and ships without full-lengths runways, in addition to vertical landings. These capabilities make the F-35B an extremely powerful, yet versatile jet for both combat and other operational situations.
