Pratt & Whitney engines cannot be selected for a counterfactual before they are available. Their 2,000-horsepower designs were not available substantially earlier than the British alternatives, and the late-1930s and early-1940s options still had problems. The Royal Navy funded work at several British engine firms, including Napier, Rolls-Royce, and Bristol. The claimed total is about four or five firms pursuing 2,000 horsepower.
Notable Point · 4:14:12-4:16:01
Why Britain funded several 2,000-horsepower aero engines
The timing and early problems of American high-power engines complicate the proposed shortcut of buying them, while the Royal Navy funded several British engine programmes.