FILE PHOTO: The logo of Pratt & Whitney is seen in front of a F135-PW-100 fighter aircraft engine during a media presentation at the Swiss Air Force base in Emmen, Switzerland March 24, 2022. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo

(Reuters) -RTX's Pratt & Whitney unit has been awarded a $2.8 billion modified contract for the production of F135 engines, the company said on Tuesday.

The contract will fund production of the engines that power Lockheed Martin's F-35 jets for the U.S. Joint Strike Fighter program and international customers.

The unit will produce and deliver 141 F135 engines for Lockheed's Lot 18 jets, according to a posting on the Pentagon's website from Friday.

Pratt & Whitney has so far delivered over 1,300 F135 production engines to the U.S. and allied nations.

RTX's shares rose 1.7% in early trading, while Lockheed was up about 1.5%.

(Reporting by Utkarsh Shetti in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo and Sriraj Kalluvila)