GE Aerospace and Kratos’ F143 Engine Wins JASSM Contract

The U.S. Air Force has designated the GEK800 turbofan engine, jointly developed by GE Aerospace and Kratos Defense, with the official military type designation “F143-ZZ-100” and awarded an Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) contract for the engine as a second-source propulsion system for the AGM-158 JASSM cruise missile.

At a Glance

The jointly developed GEK800 engine has been officially designated “F143-ZZ-100” by the U.S. Air Force.
It is positioned as a second-source propulsion alternative to Williams International’s F107, JASSM’s current sole engine supplier.
The 800-lb-thrust engine is designed for long-range missiles, Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA), and other uncrewed aerial systems.
Kratos and GE Aerospace have developed the engine since 2023 with support from the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), logging more than 50 ground engine starts.
In 2025, the engine completed altitude testing at Purdue University’s Zucrow Laboratories.
The program aims to expand the supply chain for small, low-cost, high-performance engines for cruise missiles and uncrewed platforms.

Background

The JASSM family is one of the most critical precision-guided munitions programs for the U.S. Air Force and Navy, under pressure to expand production capacity amid rising munitions demand following the war in Ukraine. Reliance on a single engine supplier creates supply-chain bottleneck risk, prompting the Pentagon to push “second source” strategies for critical components. The GE Aerospace-Kratos partnership is positioned to directly address that need.

Development moved relatively quickly compared with typical military procurement programs; a combination of internal investment and AFRL funding enabled rapid completion of the Technology Maturation and Risk Reduction (TMRR) phase. The formal F143 type designation is a concrete sign the engine is nearing operational readiness.

Regional Impact

Second-source propulsion strategies for cruise missiles and uncrewed systems are relevant well beyond the U.S. program. Countries developing their own long-range precision-strike capabilities, including Turkey with its SOM family and Atmaca missile, face similar engineering challenges around compact, low-cost turbojet/turbofan propulsion at scale. Efforts by Turkish propulsion developers to build domestic small-engine capability can draw lessons from the GEK800/F143 model of parallel-sourced, government-backed engine maturation. Expanding U.S. munitions production capacity also reshapes competitive dynamics and potential technology-sharing opportunities across the global cruise-missile and uncrewed-systems propulsion supply chain.

FAQ

What is the F143 engine? The official U.S. military type designation for the GEK800, an 800-lb-thrust turbofan jointly developed by GE Aerospace and Kratos.

What will it power? Primarily the AGM-158 JASSM cruise missile as a second-source alternative to the F107 engine, with potential use in Collaborative Combat Aircraft and other uncrewed platforms.

When did the program start? Kratos and GE Aerospace have developed the engine since 2023 with AFRL support; altitude testing was completed in 2025.