Pratt & Whitney and Frontier Airlines (Frontier) have welcomed the arrival of the carrier’s first Airbus A321neo aircraft, outfitted with Pratt & Whitney GTF™ engines.
In recognition of the companies’ relationship, Frontier asked Pratt & Whitney employees to name the first three aircraft. The first plane was named “Frederick the Bald Eagle” in honour of the company’s founder Frederick B. Rentschler, recognizing the nearly 100-year history of the engine maker. The aircraft features Pratt & Whitney’s hallmark bald eagle on the tail and marks the first of 144 A320neo-family aircraft – 134 purchased and ten leased – for which Frontier has selected the GTF engine. In the coming months, Frontier will reveal two additional aircraft named after other Pratt & Whitney pioneers, each with its own unique tail design.
Rentschler founded the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company in Hartford, Conn. in July 1925. He had a vision for viable commercial aviation: the best planes can only be built around the best engines. The company’s first product, designed by the end of that year, was an air-cooled, radial piston engine named the Wasp. The engine transformed the aviation industry and is the only aircraft engine to be designated an historic landmark to this day. The GTF engine extends Rentschler’s vision and spirit of innovation with its geared fan design. It has saved airlines more than 800 million gallons of fuel and over eight-million metric tonnes of CO2 since it entered service in January of 2016.
