The LE-7A engine is a derivative of the LE-7 engine, originally used on the H-II launcher in the 1990s. Some of the changes between the LE-7 and LE-7A are intended to lower the cost of serial production. The LE-5B engine has staged combustion. The turbopumps are procured from Ishikawajima-Harima.
First flown in 2001 on the first H-IIA launcher's flight, in continues in service today. It has been integrated as the first-stage engine for the H-IIA and H-IIB launchers.
