Westinghouse Electric W19XB-2B Jet Engine

Westinghouse Electric W19XB-2B Jet Engine

W19XB-2B Jet Engine

Engineering--United States

Aircraft--United States

In March of 1943, the first U.S.-designed and -manufactured jet engine went on test for the Westinghouse Electric Corporation, 15 months after the signing of a contract with the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer). This first engine, with a 19-inch intake diameter, was designated the WE19A, had a thrust of 1130 pounds, and weighed 827 pounds. This photograph shows the improved version of the first engine, the W19XB, circa 1944.

Originally called the Westinghouse Electric Company, George Westinghouse (1846-1914) founded his manufacturing company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on January 8, 1886. In 1889, he renamed his business The Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company. Westinghouse's primary products include turbines, generators, motors and switchgear related to the generation, transmission, and use of electricity. The company changed its name to Westinghouse Electric Corporation in 1945. In 1981, the company began to relocate its division headquarters for the Steam-Turbine Generator Divisions from Pennsylvania (turbines from Lester and generators from Pittsburgh) to Orlando, Florida. The Power Generation Business Unit (PGBU) building was located in The Quadrangle, at 4400 Alafaya Trail. Originally, Westinghouse had purchased a large plot of land for future development that extended westward from Alafaya Trail to Rouse Road. The original headquarters was located on several acres of that land parcel close to Alafaya Trail.

As the PGBU grew in size, other buildings were rented and then, after PGBU was sold to Siemens Corporation, additional buildings were added to the complex. In 1994, after a major corporate management shuffling and commitment to change from an industrial manufacturing company to primarily a broadcasting/communications company, Westinghouse bought the CBS Network and changed its name to the CBS Corporation. As the PGBU grew in size, other buildings were rented and then, after PGBU was sold to Siemens Corporation in 1998, additional buildings were added to the Quadrangle.

Original black and white diagram: Air Force Historical Research Agency, Air University, Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery, Alabama.

ca. 1944

Jaeger, Harry L.

Digital reproduction of original black and white diagram.

Air Force Historical Research Agency, Air University, Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery, Alabama.

Westinghouse Electric Collection, RICHES of Central Florida.

Lagasse, Paul D. "The Westinghouse Aviation Gas Turbine Division 1950-1960: A Case Study of the Role of Failure in Technology and Business." M.A. thesis, University of Maryland at College Park, 1997, page 4.

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Jaeger, Harry L.

Cepero, Laura

"History." Westinghouse Nuclear. http://www.westinghousenuclear.com/About/History.

"Westinghouse Power Generation Booklet." RICHES of Central Florida. https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka2/items/show/6422.