EAST HARTFORD, Conn., April 23, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Air New Zealand has selected Pratt & Whitney's PurePower^® PW1100G-JM engines for 13 firm A320neo family aircraft. The agreement also provides fleet management support services for up to 16 years. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2017 and continue through 2019. The PurePower Geared Turbofan™ (GTF) family of engines has completed more than 17,000 hours of testing, including 4,000 hours of flight time. Pratt & Whitney is a United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX) company.

"Air New Zealand is committed to environmental sustainability and operating one of the most advanced and fuel efficient fleets," said Bruce Parton, Chief Operations Officer, Air New Zealand. "The PurePower GTF engine will enable us to not only reduce our fuel burn but also lower our operations cost which is great for our business."

"Pratt & Whitney is honored that Air New Zealand has chosen us as the engine provider for their fleet and pleased that the benefits of our innovative engine technology meet their business needs," said Greg Gernhardt, president, Pratt & Whitney Commercial Engines. "As the PurePower GTF engine continues to meet or exceed customer expectations, it is evident that our unparalleled technology to reduce fuel burn, environmental emissions and noise prove that Pratt & Whitney is the industry leader in propulsion technology."

The PurePower engine family has more than 6,300 orders, including options, with 60 customers from 30 countries.

Air New Zealand is a member of Star Alliance. The Star Alliance network was established in 1997 as the first truly global airline alliance to offer worldwide reach, recognition and seamless service to the international traveller.  Overall, the Star Alliance network offers more than 18,000 daily flights to 1,269 airports in 193 countries. Air New Zealand is an international and domestic airline group which provides air passenger and cargo transport services within New Zealand, as well as to and from Australia, the Pacific, Asia, North America and the United Kingdom. It was named the 2015 Airline of the Year by AirRatings.com.

Pratt & Whitney is a world leader in the design, manufacture and service of aircraft engines and auxiliary power units. United Technologies Corp., based in Hartford, Connecticut, provides high technology products and services to the building and aerospace industries. To learn more about UTC, visit its website at www.utc.com, or follow the company on Twitter: @UTC.

This press release contains forward-looking statements concerning the anticipated performance of new products and anticipated future business opportunities. Actual results may differ materially from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to changes in levels of demand in the aerospace industry, in levels of air travel, and in the number of aircraft to be built; challenges in the design, development, production and support of advanced technologies; as well as other risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to those detailed from time to time in United Technologies Corp.'s Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

For more information on the Pratt & Whitney PurePower engine, visit: www.purepowerengines.com.
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SOURCE Pratt & Whitney