Rolls-Royce, Japan’s IHI to Develop Future Fighter Engine Demonstrator

Rolls-Royce has teamed up with Japan’s IHI Corporation to develop and deliver a future fighter engine demonstrator.

The engine demonstrator programme will be a critical step forward in enabling the two nations to develop their future fighter aircraft requirements, potentially securing hundreds of future jobs in the UK and Japan, Rolls-Royce said in a statement.

Work on the joint engine demonstrator will kickstart early next year, with the UK investing an initial £30 million in planning, digital designs and innovative manufacturing developments.

A further £200 million of UK funding is expected to go towards developing a full-scale demonstrator power system, supporting hundreds of highly skilled jobs, including many at Rolls-Royce’s Filton facility in Bristol.

The company noted that recent technology programs conducted by Japanese government and industries, along with technologies being developed in the U.K. Tempest fighter-jet program will contribute to the next-generation power and propulsion system.