The Whittle W2/700 Engine. Frank Whittle developed the first turbojet engine with enough operating thrust to power an aircraft in 1939. The W2 was the second, more powerful, version of a flight-ready turbojet engine developed by Whittle. The W2/700 engine flew in the Gloster E.28/39, the first British aircraft to fly with a turbojet engine, and the Gloster Meteor.