GE Aerospace wins Air Force contract to advance GE426 autonomous aircraft engine

GE Aerospace (NYSE: GE) received a contract from the U.S. Air Force to complete the preliminary design review for its GE426 engine, which supports the Air Force's medium thrust class Autonomous Collaborative Platform effort.

The GE426 engine is designed for uncrewed, autonomous combat aircraft in the medium-thrust-class ACP mission. The contract will advance the engine through preliminary design review while refining system capability, producibility, and cost to meet Air Force requirements.

GE Aerospace completed the concept design review of the GE426 in August 2025, validating the engine's architecture. The company has previously demonstrated capability in rapidly designing, manufacturing and testing small engines for Air Force applications.

"We've proven we can rapidly move from concept to engine demonstration with the GEK800, and our focus now is on applying that process to the GE426 to ensure it provides the performance, affordability and readiness the warfighter needs," said Steve Russell, Vice President and General Manager of Edison Works at GE Aerospace.

The Air Force Research Laboratory's Autonomous Collaborative Platforms initiative develops advanced autonomous platforms that enable uncrewed systems to operate as coordinated teams alongside crewed aircraft.

GE Aerospace's small engine portfolio includes the GEK800 and GEK1500 engines developed with Kratos Defense & Security Solutions. The company operates with approximately 50,000 commercial and 30,000 military aircraft engines in its installed base.

The contract was awarded through an Other Transaction Authority Project Agreement by SOSSEC Inc. under the Propulsion Consortium Initiative 2.0 between the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center and SOSSEC Inc.

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