“Pratt & Whitney” is one of the most famous and leading American producers of aviation engines for civil and military aviation. It is known all over the world. Presently it is a part of the corporation “United Technologies”. The company belongs to the «large three» of producers of aviation engines together with such companies as «Rolls-Royce» and “General Electric”. Aside from aero-engines, “Pratt & Whitney” produces civil and military gas turbine engines and its applications, aeroderivative industrial and marine gas turbines, rocket engines, reciprocating engines and engines for locomotives.
“Pratt and Whitney” was organized in 1860. Its founders were Francis Pratt and Amos Whitney. At that time they produced rather simple tools and engines not connected with aircraft industry in comparison with today achievements. Only in 65 years the history of “Pratt and Whitney” Company started as the biggest producers of aviation engines, when Frederich Brant Rentschler, a perspective at that time aviation engineer, addressed to Pratt and Whitney with grand and complicated question concerning production and financing of his new ideas in the spheres of aircraft manufacture.
In 1926 Frederich Brant Rentschler founded United Aircraft Transport Corporation, the forerunner of modern United Technologies. But he continued to use the name “Pratt and Whitney” in his corporation according to a contract with them.
In the middle of the 20-th century the turbines produced by “Pratt and Whitney” were used by the competitors of American Championships of Car Racing and Formula One.
In the year 2004 there were some considerable events in the activity the company “Pratt and Whitney”, for example: in October, 2004 the company signed a three-year exclusive contract on factory technical maintenance of engines JT9D, set on airplanes ”˜Boeing 767′ of “KrasAir” airlines; in October, 2004 the first demonstration flight of helicopter of Euromil Mi-38, equipped with two experimental shaft-turbine engines of PW 127/5 took a place successfully; in December, 2004 the first three serial helicopters ”˜Ansat’, equipped with the engines PW207, were delivered to a customer.
On the 2nd of August 2005 “Pratt and Whitney” bought the company Rocketdyne, that is why nowadays “Pratt and Whitney” has a new name: “Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne. Inc”. So, everything depicted before is just a drop in the ocean, because the history of the company development is rather rich that means that progress never stands still.
Speaking about location of the company it must be mentioned that it is disseminated in almost all powerful and big countries: USA (East Hartford, Connecticut; Columbus, Georgia; Middletown, Connecticut; Cheshire, Connecticut; West Palm Beach, Florida; North Berwick, Maine), Canada, Russia and others.
For example “Pratt and Whitney-Rus” is a branch establishment of the company “Pratt and Whitney Canada Corp.” being the member of Pratt & Whitney Group, subdivisions of United Technologies Corporation (UTC). Pratt & Whitney Canada works in Russia since 1993. The sphere of activity of LTD. “Pratt and Whitney Rus” is providing of engineering services for Pratt Whitney Canada: participating in planning of elements of power-plants, providing of engineer-coordinating support of P&WC projects in Russia and Commonwealth of Independent States, setting of their engines on airplanes and helicopters, support of “Pratt and Whitney” customers.
One of the last achievements of the company is that “Pratt and Whitney” won NASA’s order on the creation of engines for a new which will come to take today space shuttles’ place. About a victory in the competition on a right for the receipt of contract which is estimated in 1,2 milliards of dollars the company declared on the 18-th of July, 2007.
The engines J-2-X will be created by a subdivision of corporation “Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne” which is based in California. Exactly its specialists from the beginning of 1970s were engaged in constructing, production and modernization of those engines J-2, and then the engines J-2-S for the American rockets transmitters.
The second stages of rockets transmitters “Ares-1” and “Ares-5” will be equipped with the engines J-2-X. With their help NASA hopes to deliver the astronauts on the board of “Orion” and necessary cargoes to the Moon by the year 2020, and the first tester starting of new transmitter is already planned for the year 2014. The process of discarding of NASA’s shuttles is intended to complete by the end of 2010.
The guidance of “Pratt and Whitney” company assures that the construction of this new engine will meet more high requirements to efficiency and more hard standards and rules of reliability, quality and safety. Steven Finger, the President of the corporation declared that he is very proud that NASA has chosen his company as “motive force” for returning of the American astronauts to the Moon and farther, taking into account the plans of space department of the USA concerning the realization of the piloted flight to the Mars.
In accordance with a contract the company “Pratt and Whitney” must complete the creation and tests of their new engine by the year 2013.