(Alliance News) - Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC said its Rolls-Royce North America unit has been selected by the US Air Force to provide the power plant for the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress.
The agreement was signed under the Commercial Engine Replacement Program and is worth a potential USD2.6 billion.
The single award contract provides for 608 military derivative commercial engines, plus spare engines, associated support equipment and commercial engineering data, to include sustainment activities, to be used on the B-52H bomber fleet, the US Air Force said on Friday last week.
The Pentagon made the announcement after a multi-year competition, which saw Rolls-Royce beat out US rivals General Electric Co and Pratt & Whitney for the lucrative contract.
As part of the deal, Rolls-Royce will build and test the F130 engines at its Indianapolis, Indiana, facility following the recent completion of a USD600 million investment in the manufacturing campus. The B-52 CERP win creates demand for 650 engines to be produced at the site.
The Rolls-Royce F130 engine will replace the TF33-PW-103, which has powered the B-52 since the 1960s, and is projected to no longer be supportable beyond 2030. The B-52 original equipment manufacturer, Boeing Co, is responsible for integrating the engines onto the aircraft.
The first two fully modified B-52s are projected to deliver by the end of 2025 and will undergo ground and flight testing. The first lot of operational B-52s with the new engines is projected to deliver by the end of 2028 with the entire fleet modified by 2035.
The B-52 has been in service with the US Air Force since 1955 and was built to carry nuclear weapons on Cold War-era deterrence missions.
The new engines on the B-52s are expected to remain on the B-52H through at least 2050, increase fuel efficiency, increase range, reduce emissions of unburned hydrocarbons, and reduce maintenance costs.
Craig McVay, senior vice-president of Strategic Campaigns for Rolls-Royce Defence, said: "This is a major win for Rolls-Royce. We've been planning and preparing for this outcome and are ready to hit the ground running to prove that we are the best choice for the Air Force and the B-52."
Rolls-Royce shares were trading 4.6% higher in London on Monday at 138.64 pence each, the best large-cap performer.
By Evelina Grecenko; evelinagrecenko@alliancenews.com
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