Sunday, November 8, 2026
TGOs

The business of defense

Get the Weekly
Topics
Menu
Search

Industry

Pratt & Whitney starts construction on $100 million engine parts facility in Poland

The Rzeszów expansion will add rotating-component manufacturing, supporting a forging investment in Georgia. Pratt & Whitney expects both projects to be fully operational by 2028.

Pratt & Whitney has started construction on a $100 million facility in Rzeszów, Poland, the RTX business announced Oct. 23. The company intends the expansion to meet growing demand for commercial and military engines, including the GTF, F135 and F100.1

Rzeszów expansion follows and supports a $200 million Columbus Forge investment

Pratt & Whitney

Rzeszówprocessing isothermally forged partsplanned

will house specialized capabilities for processing isothermally forged parts, including heat treatment, sonic machining and inspection operations

Columbus Forgeseventh isothermal forging pressplanned

The isothermal forging press is expected to become operational in 2028.

These capital projects, expected to be fully operational by 2028

Source: Pratt & Whitney / RTX, Feb. 24, April 22 and Oct. 23, 2026. As of Oct. 23, 2026.

Sources
TGOs tgos.io

The Polish expansion supports a $200 million investment announced in February for a seventh isothermal forging press at Columbus Forge in Georgia.1, 3 In April, Pratt & Whitney said the new facility at its Rzeszów site would house capabilities for processing isothermally forged parts, including heat treatment, sonic machining and inspection.2

The new 6,500-square-meter building is intended to introduce manufacturing of critical rotating components at Rzeszów. The site already makes the GTF fan drive gear system, F100 static structures and key F135 parts. Pratt & Whitney expects the expanded site to become operational in 2028 and create more than 120 jobs.1

Pratt & Whitney expects the Polish expansion and Georgia forging investment together to enable a 30% increase in output of critical engine parts, such as rotating compressors and turbine disks.1 In February, the company attributed the same 30% increase to the Columbus press alone.3 Its Oct. 23 release gives no separate output figure for Rzeszów.1

Sources (3)
  1. RTX: Pratt & Whitney initiates construction of new $100 million Rzeszów expansion (Oct. 23, 2026) www.rtx.com
  2. RTX: Pratt & Whitney invests $100 million to increase production capacity, add advanced capabilities in Poland (April 22, 2026) www.rtx.com
  3. RTX: Pratt & Whitney broadens manufacturing capabilities with $200 million investment in Columbus, Georgia (Feb. 24, 2026) www.rtx.com
Story permalink ↗
Keep readingBack to top ↑

Next story

Industry · Primes

RTX's defense backlog grows $45 billion in a quarter

Defense reached about 48% of RTX's backlog in the third quarter, up from about 41% in the second. RTX also raised its 2026 adjusted sales outlook.

RTX's defense backlog rose $45 billion to $164 billion in the third quarter of 2026.1–2 Commercial backlog increased $6 billion.1

RTX's defense backlog rose far more than its commercial backlog

Company-wide backlog change, Q2 to Q3 2026; USD billion

Defense+$45B
Commercial+$6B

Net changes between reported quarterly backlog balances.

Source: RTX Q2 and Q3 2026 results. As of Oct. 20, 2026.

TGOs tgos.io

The increase shifted the company's backlog mix toward defense, which accounted for about 48% of the total, compared with about 41% in the second quarter.1–2

RTX received Tomahawk and AMRAAM multi-year undefinitized production contracts during the quarter. Its results release did not disclose their values, leaving their contribution to the defense backlog increase unspecified. Chief executive Chris Calio cited more than $81 billion in new awards across commercial and defense combined.1

RTX raised its full-year adjusted sales outlook to $97.0 billion to $97.5 billion, following an increase in July.1–2 It also raised its 2026 organic sales growth forecast to 10% to 11%.1

The company-wide defense backlog expansion accompanied slower reported sales growth at Raytheon: the segment's third-quarter sales grew 14% year over year on both a reported and organic basis.1–2 Reported year-over-year growth was 18% in the second quarter.2 RTX attributed the third-quarter sales increase to higher volume on naval programs and land and air defense systems, including Patriot, Standard Missile and Tomahawk.1

Sources (2)
  1. RTX Reports Q3 2026 Results, Oct. 20, 2026 www.rtx.com
  2. RTX Reports Q2 2026 Results, July 23, 2026 www.rtx.com
Story permalink ↗

Next story

Industry · Munitions

Lockheed lines up a share of Avio's rocket motor capacity for PrSM, ER GMLRS

Initial work under the strategic cooperation agreement follows qualification, at an Avio USA plant in Hurt, Va., that is still under construction.

Lockheed Martin and Avio announced a strategic cooperation agreement for solid rocket motor (SRM) production on Tuesday, Oct. 13. It gives Lockheed access to a share of Avio's merchant supply capacity for the Extended Range GMLRS (ER GMLRS) and the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM). After qualification, initial work will focus on motors for those two programs, to be made at Avio USA's new plant in Hurt, Va.1

The agreement provides Lockheed access to a share of Avio's merchant supply capacity

Lockheed Martin and Avio announced a strategic cooperation agreement for the production of solid rocket motors on Oct. 13, 2026

Lockheed MartinER GMLRS and PrSM
strategic cooperation agreementplanned
AvioAvio USA's new facility in Hurt, Virginia
Raytheonsigned a memorandum of understanding on Nov. 10, 2025
preferred access to a shareplanned
AvioAvio USA's new facility in Hurt, Virginia

After qualification, initial work under the agreement will focus on solid rocket motors

Construction of the plant is expected to be completed by late 2028, with production anticipated to begin in early 2029

Lockheed Martin and Avio releases, Oct. 13, 2026; Avio USA release, Sept. 29, 2026; Avio releases, Nov. 10, 2025. Data as of Oct. 13, 2026.

Sources
TGOs tgos.io

Last November the two companies signed a non-binding term sheet under which Lockheed would have preferred access to a portion of the plant's capacity for "both tactical and strategic size SRMs." They said then that they intended to negotiate a Strategic Cooperation Agreement.4 The agreement now announced names two programs for that initial work. Neither company's release gives the agreement's value, motor quantities, delivery schedule or whether its terms are binding.1

Lockheed is not the plant's only prospective customer. Avio USA, the U.S. subsidiary of Rome-based Avio S.p.A., broke ground in Hurt on Sept. 29.3 Avio CEO Giulio Ranzo said the group has launched an investment of more than $500 million in new U.S. SRM capacity "with a view to become a merchant supplier to the various defense customers."1 Avio USA is developing the plant for Raytheon programs as well as Lockheed's.3 Under a memorandum of understanding signed the same day as Lockheed's term sheet, Raytheon will have preferred access to a share of the plant's production capacity.4–5 That partnership builds on a July 2024 contract for preliminary engineering work on the Mk104 rocket motor.5

Lockheed says the added capacity creates the opportunity to accelerate ER GMLRS and PrSM output.1 That supply depends on a plant where construction is expected to finish by late 2028 and production is anticipated to begin in early 2029. Motor qualification and the plant's completion are the next milestones to watch.1, 3

Sources (5)
  1. Lockheed Martin: Lockheed Martin and Avio Announce Strategic Cooperation Agreement for Solid Rocket Motor Production (Oct. 13, 2026) news.lockheedmartin.com
  2. Avio: Lockheed Martin and Avio Announce Strategic Cooperation Agreement for Solid Rocket Motor Production (Oct. 13, 2026) www.avio.com
  3. Avio USA: Avio USA Breaks Ground in Virginia on First U.S. Solid Rocket Motor Facility (Sept. 29, 2026) news.lockheedmartin.com
  4. Avio: Avio and Lockheed Martin Sign Term Sheet to Support the Establishment of a New Plant for Solid Rocket Motors in the USA (Nov. 10, 2025) www.avio.com
  5. Avio: Avio and RTX's Raytheon Sign Memorandum of Understanding to Establish New Solid Rocket Motor Facility in the U.S. (Nov. 10, 2025) www.avio.com
Story permalink ↗

More from TGOs