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The Australia-based aerospace company’s local MRO facility has become the first F135 engine depot in the Asia-Pacific region.
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TAE Aerospace has confirmed it has achieved Initial Depot Capability (IDC) requirements for the repair of the Pratt & Whitney F135 engine fan and power modules, used in all three variants of the Lockheed Martin-built F-35 Lightning II fighter jet.
TAE Aerospace’s F135 Maintenance, Repair, Overhaul and Upgrade (MRO&U) facility in Australia has now become the first operational F135 engine depot in the Asia-Pacific region, and has begun providing repair services for jets in the Asia-Pacific region under the F-35’s Global Support System.
The firm achieved the capability milestone after completing a full rebuild of an F135 power module at its Queensland facility, which followed fan module repair qualification in 2020.
“The investment made by the Commonwealth of Australia and TAE Aerospace over the past five years will result in benefits for both Australia, with an important sovereign industrial capability now available in country, as well as at the local level, with the creation of many jobs over the coming years,” TAE Aerospace CEO Andrew Sanderson said.
“We congratulate the TAE Aerospace team on reaching this critical sustainment milestone for the F135 engine,” said O Sung Kwon, vice president, Pratt & Whitney Military Engines Sustainment Operations.
“The activation of the Australia depot will bring increased capacity to the global F135 MRO&U network in support of the growing fleet. Standing up the regional MRO&U depots is an integral part of the enterprise’s strategy to accelerate capacity growth across the F135 MRO&U network to exceed program requirements.”
Since securing the Asia-Pacific MRO&U contract in 2015, TAE Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney and the Commonwealth government have:
- Developed TAE Aerospace’s new 16,000-square metre Turbine Engine Maintenance Facility (TEMF) in Bundamba, Queensland;
- completed the first F135 fan module repair outside of the US in February 2020; and
- completed the first power module repair outside of the US in May 2021.
“Strong partnerships between the Commonwealth, global OEMs, and Australian industry are fundamental to supporting airpower capability in our region,” Sanderson added.
“Close collaboration has enabled us to stand up this important capability in time, underpinning Australia’s goal to achieve a sovereign MRO&U capability for the F135 engine.”
Kwon lauded the success of collaboration with TAE Aerospace, first established in the 1990s on the F-111 Aardvark program.
“We’re thrilled to build on this partnership with the F135 engine for the F-35 fighter, which will be the centerpiece of allied air power in the Asia-Pacific for years to come,” Kwon added.
[Related: Fully-armed RAAF F-35s take flight for the first time]
