Kratos and GE Aerospace’s GEK800 Engine Receives U.S. Military Type Designation F143-ZZ-100 and EMD Contract Award for JASSM
Rhea-AI Summary
Kratos Defense (NASDAQ: KTOS) and GE Aerospace (NYSE: GE) announced that their jointly developed GEK800 engine has received the U.S. military type designation F143-ZZ-100 and an Engineering, Manufacturing and Development (EMD) contract from the U.S. Air Force as a second-source propulsion system for the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM).
The F143 is an 800‑lb thrust turbofan aimed at long-range missiles and other uncrewed applications. According to Kratos and GE Aerospace, the program combines internal investment with Air Force Research Laboratory support, has completed more than 50 engine starts in ground testing, and achieved altitude testing in 2025 at Purdue University’s Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories.
Positive
- USAF EMD contract awarded for F143-ZZ-100 as JASSM second-source engine
- U.S. military type designation F143-ZZ-100 granted to GEK800 turbofan
- 800-lb thrust turbofan targeted for long-range missiles and uncrewed systems
- More than 50 engine starts completed in ground testing at multiple facilities
- Altitude testing in 2025 completed at Purdue’s Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories
- Program supported by Air Force Research Laboratory funding and collaboration
Negative
- None.
Key Figures
Historical Context
| Date | Event | Sentiment | 24h Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 10 | Missile defense test | Positive | +2.7% | Target systems supported a successful missile-defense flight experiment with U.S. and Japanese partners |
| Aug 06 | Army contract award | Positive | +3.7% | Kratos received an Army contract to develop a next-generation Javelin missile seeker |
| Aug 04 | Quarterly earnings report | Positive | +6.7% | Q2 revenue growth, raised full-year guidance, and $2.084 billion backlog |
| Aug 04 | Cybersecurity partnership | Positive | +5.4% | Resecurity joined Space ISAC to expand space-infrastructure cybersecurity collaboration |
| Jul 29 | Drone contract update | Positive | -9.8% | Chaparral drone gained three unattended delivery modes under a U.S. Army contract |
24h Move is the share-price change in the day after each event; other market factors may also have contributed.
Recent positive company-related announcements were generally followed by gains, although one announcement produced a negative reaction.
Key Terms
second-source propulsion system technical
engineering, manufacturing and development (emd) technical
turbofan technical
technology maturation and risk reduction (tmrr) technical
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
Engine selected as a second-source propulsion system for the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM), advancing the program to deliver small, low-cost, high-performance engines for missiles and uncrewed platforms
SAN DIEGO, Aug. 17, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: KTOS), a Technology Company in the Defense, National Security and Global Markets, and GE Aerospace (NYSE: GE) today announced that the GEK800 engine, which received the U.S. Military Engine Type Designation F143-ZZ-100, has been awarded a contract with the United States Air Force for the Engineering, Manufacturing and Development (EMD) of the turbofan as a second-source propulsion system for the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM).
The designation and contract mark advancement of the program designed to provide small, low-cost, high-performance engines for use in cruise missiles, collaborative combat-type aircraft, and other uncrewed aerial vehicles.
“The F143-ZZ-100 designation and EMD award are a testament to the strong performance and capability of the GEK800 engine and the strength of our partnership with Kratos. This reflects years of disciplined engineering to deliver propulsion systems that meet the evolving, mission-critical requirements of our military customers,” said Amy Gowder, President and CEO of GE Aerospace Defense & Systems.
“Kratos has been working with our outstanding partner GE Aerospace and the United States Air Force to support the Department of War in reindustrializing U.S. manufacturing capacity and capability in the area of low cost, rapidly manufacturable, in large quantities, jet engines for drones, cruise missiles and other systems. Kratos and GE Aerospace are making significant investments with our government partners, to support U.S. National Security priorities,” said Eric DeMarco, President and CEO of Kratos.
The GEK800, now designated the F143, is an 800-lb thrust turbofan engine designed to power long-range missiles and other uncrewed applications. With a combination of internal investment plus support and funding from the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Kratos and GE Aerospace began working together in 2023 to complete a Technology Maturation and Risk Reduction (TMRR) phase including testing of the engine. The joint team has completed more than 50 engine starts in ground testing at Kratos and GE Aerospace testing facilities, and in 2025 successfully completed altitude testing at Purdue University’s Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories.
About Kratos Defense & Security Solutions
Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: KTOS) is a technology, products, system and software company addressing the defense, national security, and commercial markets. Kratos makes true internally funded research, development, capital and other investments, to rapidly develop, produce and field solutions that address our customers’ mission critical needs and requirements. At Kratos, affordability is a technology, and we seek to utilize proven, leading-edge approaches and technology, not unproven bleeding edge approaches or technology, with Kratos’ approach designed to reduce cost, schedule and risk, enabling us to be first to market with cost effective solutions. We believe that Kratos is known as an innovative disruptive change agent in the industry, a company that is an expert in designing products and systems up front for successful rapid, large quantity, low-cost future manufacturing which is a value-add competitive differentiator for our large traditional prime system integrator partners and also to our government and commercial customers. Kratos intends to pursue program and contract opportunities as the prime or lead contractor when we believe that our probability of win (PWin) is high and any investment required by Kratos is within our capital resource comfort level. We intend to partner and team with a large, traditional system integrator when our assessment of PWin is greater or required investment is beyond Kratos’ comfort level. Kratos’ primary business areas include virtualized ground systems for satellites and space vehicles including software for C2 and telemetry, tracking and control (TT&C), jet powered unmanned aerial drone systems, hypersonic vehicles and rocket systems, propulsion systems for drones, missiles, loitering munitions, supersonic systems, space craft and launch systems, C5ISR and microwave electronic products for missile, radar, missile defense, space, satellite, counter UAS, directed energy, communication and other systems, and virtual & augmented reality training systems for the warfighter. For more information, visit www.KratosDefense.com and follow Kratos on LinkedIn and X.
About GE Aerospace
GE Aerospace is a global aerospace propulsion, services, and systems leader with an installed base of approximately 49,000 commercial and 29,000 military aircraft engines. With a global team of approximately 53,000 employees building on more than a century of innovation and learning, GE Aerospace is committed to inventing the future of flight, lifting people up, and bringing them home safely. Learn more about how GE Aerospace and its partners are defining flight for today, tomorrow, and the future at www.geaerospace.com.
Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are made on the basis of the current beliefs, expectations and assumptions of the management of Kratos and are subject to significant risks and uncertainty. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and Kratos undertakes no obligation to update or revise these statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Although Kratos believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, these statements involve many risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from what may be expressed or implied in these forward-looking statements. For a further discussion of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed in these forward-looking statements, as well as risks relating to the business of Kratos in general, see the risk disclosures in the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Kratos for the year ended December 28, 2025, and in subsequent reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K and other filings made with the SEC by Kratos.
Kratos Press Contact:
Claire Cantrell
claire.cantrell@kratosdefense.com
Kratos Investor Information:
877-934-4687
investor@kratosdefense.com
GE Aerospace Press Contact:
Deb Case
Deborah.case@geaerospace.com
