BMT Aerospace joins Safran Aero Boosters and Pratt & Whitney to qualify large-scale titanium 3D printed F135 engine parts

Safran Aero Boosters has signed an agreement with Pratt & Whitney to qualify and deliver large-scale 3D printed titanium components for the F135 engine, which powers the F-35 fighter. Belgian partner BMT Aerospace joined the effort, formalized this week at the Farnborough International Airshow. The deal follows a similar Pratt & Whitney partnership announced days earlier with GKN Aerospace covering large structural F135 components. Safran Aero Boosters said the additive parts will target the engine's most challenging and highest-priority components to ease supply chain constraints, with a first large-scale proof of concept already complete.

For BMT Aerospace, the deal extends its titanium additive manufacturing work into a defense engine program that carries the qualification rigor and production volume of the F-35 propulsion line, a step up from the structural and landing-gear-adjacent titanium AM work the company is known for. Pairing with Safran Aero Boosters, an established Pratt & Whitney supplier, gives BMT a qualified route into a US defense program that is actively diversifying its supply base under current AM-friendly procurement conditions. It also reinforces Belgium's position as a source of qualified titanium AM capacity for US aerospace primes, alongside the parallel GKN Aerospace track.

The near-simultaneous P&W deals with GKN and with Safran Aero Boosters/BMT show large-scale metal AM for engine hardware moving from pilot programs toward multi-supplier qualification on a live defense platform, rather than a single-vendor exclusive.