Pratt & Whitney to lay off 200 in CT

EAST HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) -- Jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney says it's cutting 350 salaried workers, eliminating about 200 jobs in Connecticut.

The subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. said Tuesday it's responding to unspecified "business and economic conditions." The East Hartford-based company said the cuts are necessary to remain competitive.

Pratt & Whitney announced in December it is laying off 80 hourly employees and eliminating 20 other jobs through buyouts as it faces falling demand for repair work.

The company employs about 36,000 workers worldwide and 10,000 in Connecticut.

President David Hess said last May that sales are expected to double, to $24 billion, by the end of the decade. But he said Pratt & Whitney must navigate a few transitional years of high fuel costs and a weak economic recovery that are pressuring airline customers.