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Northrop Grumman Tests Unmanned X-47B Flight with Pratt Whitney’s Engine

By Andy ChoiNov 30 2011

Northrop Grumman has tested the first flight of X-47B aircraft, which uses the F100-PW-220U engine and exhaust system from Pratt & Whitney, a United Technologies company.

The testing is part of the Unmanned Combat Air System Carrier Demonstration (UCAS-D) programme of the US Navy and was conducted in the Edwards Air Force Base. The aircraft, which is also known as the Air Vehicle 2 (AV-2) flew for a period of 30 minutes as part of the testing programme.

The F100-PW-220U engine has the capacity to provide a thrust of 16,000 lbs and has been designed for maritime operations such as carrier deck operations. The testing of the X-47B flight not only proves the durability of the engine and the exhaust system but also serves as an important milestone in the UCAS-D programme. The programme will begin transitioning both the test aircrafts to Naval Air Station Patuxent River to carry out shore-based testing by early 2012. The unmanned combat air system is likely to have carrier demonstrations by 2013.

Pratt & Whitney acquired the contract to integrate the exhaust system into the engine for the X-47B flight during 2008. The F100-PW-220U engine has been modelled after the F100-PW-220 and 220E engines which run the F-16 Falcon and F-15 Eagle has an operational experience of more than 12 million hours. The propulsion system of the engine was also tested during the X-47B testing flight programme.

Source:

http://www.pratt-whitney.com

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Choi, Andy. (2019, February 20). Northrop Grumman Tests Unmanned X-47B Flight with Pratt Whitney’s Engine. AZoRobotics. Retrieved on August 20, 2025 from https://www.azorobotics.com/News.aspx?newsID=2287.
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Choi, Andy. "Northrop Grumman Tests Unmanned X-47B Flight with Pratt Whitney’s Engine". AZoRobotics. 20 August 2025. <https://www.azorobotics.com/News.aspx?newsID=2287>.
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Choi, Andy. "Northrop Grumman Tests Unmanned X-47B Flight with Pratt Whitney’s Engine". AZoRobotics. https://www.azorobotics.com/News.aspx?newsID=2287. (accessed August 20, 2025).
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Choi, Andy. 2019. Northrop Grumman Tests Unmanned X-47B Flight with Pratt Whitney’s Engine. AZoRobotics, viewed 20 August 2025, https://www.azorobotics.com/News.aspx?newsID=2287.

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