F404 GE developed the F404 for the
F/A-18 Hornet, shortly after losing the competition for the
F-15 Eagle's engine to
Pratt & Whitney, and losing the
Lightweight Fighter (LWF) competition to the
Pratt & Whitney F100 powered
YF-16. For the F/A-18, GE based the F404 on the
YJ101 engine they had developed for the
Northrop YF-17, enlarging the bypass ratio from 0.20 to 0.34 to enable higher fuel efficiency. The engine consists of a three-staged fan, seven axial stage compressor arrangement, single stage low and high pressure turbines, an augmentor, and produces maximum thrust of 16,000 lbf (71.2 kN) in the original F404-GE-400 model. The engine was designed with a higher priority on reliability than performance. Cost was the main goal in the design of the engine. GE also analyzed "throttle profiles" and found that pilots were changing throttle settings far more often than engineers previously expected, putting undue stress on the engines. GE also sought with the F404 a design that would avoid compressor stalls and other engine failures, and would respond quickly to control inputs; a common complaint of pilots converting from propeller planes to jets was that early turbojets were not responsive to changes in thrust input. GE executives Frederick A. Larson and Paul Setts also set the goal that the new engine would be smaller than the F-4's
GE J79, but provide at least as much thrust, and cost half as much as the P&W F100 engine for the F-16. Due to a fan designed to smooth airflow before it enters the compressor, the F404 has high resistance to
compressor stalls, even at high angles of attack. It requires less than two shop visits per 1,000 flight hours and averages 6,500 hours between in-flight events. It also demonstrates high responsiveness to control inputs, spooling from idle to full afterburner in 4 seconds. The engine contains an in-flight engine condition monitoring system (IECMS) that monitors for critical malfunctions and keeps track of parts lifetimes. GE developed the
F110 for the Air Force as an alternative to the
Pratt & Whitney F100 for use on the F-16 and F-15 based on the
F101 and used F404 technology. The F110 was derived from the F101 via the F101DFE, though some elements of the F404 such as the design of the fan, albeit enlarged, were incorporated, per the F110 page and other sources. GE developed the F404-GE-402 in response to a Swiss requirement for more power in its F/A-18 version; it produces a maximum of 17,700 lbf (78.7 kN) of thrust with afterburner. The
KAI T-50 Golden Eagle uses a single General Electric F404-GE-102 turbofan engine with
Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) system; the engine is similar to the F404-402, but with additional redundancies built in for single-engine operations. The aircraft has a maximum speed of Mach 1.5. The General Electric F404-GE-103 is the latest derivative of the F404 engine family, developed for use in advanced trainer and light combat aircraft. It was originally developed for the
Boeing T-7A Red Hawk, and is also used in the
Turkish Aerospace Hürjet. The -103 variant includes safety features tailored for single-engine operations and incorporates a Full Authority Digital Electronic Control (FADEC) system derived from the GE F414 engine. Almost 4,000 F404 engines power the F/A-18 Hornets in service worldwide. The F404 engine family had totaled over 12 million flight hours by 2010.
F404-GE-IN20 For the
HAL Tejas, GE developed an uprated
F404-IN20, which is the highest thrust variant in F404 family, and which produces a maximum of of thrust with afterburner. General Electric had been collaborating with
Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) for the Tejas programme since 1980s while the engine variant was chosen to power the jets in 2004. India bought 10 F404-F2J3 which is used on 2 technology demonstrators and 6 prototypes of the Tejas in early 2000s. Two deals for 17 and 24 engines for powering LSP (including Naval prototypes) and Mk 1 IOC variants of Tejas was signed in 2004 and 2007, respectively. By 2016, 75 engines (including F2J3 and IN20 variants) have been delivered to India. Deliveries of the engines were completed between 2008 and 2016. On 17 August 2021, India signed a contract with GE worth to supply 99 F404 engines and service support by 2029. However, General Electric had closed down the production line of F404-IN20 engines without further prospects of orders from India and the first engine was yet to be delivered as of October 2024 leading to the subsequent delivery delays of
HAL Tejas Mk1A to the
Indian Air Force. First engine delivery dates were delayed to September 2024 as of then. Following the orders a lengthy process of sorting out supply chain problems was undertaken and the production line at
Boston restarted by late 2024 to enable deliveries after a stagnation of 5 years. As of July 2025, a total of 12 engines were expected to be delivered in the fiscal year at two units a month until March 2026. However, the delivery schedule was again revised to one engine a month till October followed by two engines monthly thereafter. The August deadline for third engine was also missed and GE had committed to deliver three to five engines by October. It was projected that HAL would place an extra $1 billion order in September for 113 engines and related services for 97 Tejas Mk1A. The agreement was subsequently signed on November 7, 2025. It is anticipated that the deliveries will begin in 2027 and will be completed by 2032.
F412 GE developed the F404 into the F412-GE-400 non-afterburning turbofan for the
McDonnell Douglas A-12 Avenger II. After the cancellation of the A-12, the research was directed toward an engine for the Super Hornet, which evolved into the
F414. ==Applications==