Over 100 Orders For Engine On A350 So Far

US Airways has reached agreement with General Electric Company to purchase GEnx engines for its new order of 20 Airbus A350 aircraft. The contract is valued at more than $400 million.

"GE has collaborated closely with US Airways as it restructures and invests in new aircraft," said David Romansky, GE's regional sales director. "GE has a long history with the airline and looks forward to supporting this new aircraft fleet."

As was reported last week in Aero-News, US Airways signed a deal with Airbus for 20 of the new medium-range airliners, expected to enter revenue service for the carrier in 2011.

To date, GE has signed agreements to power a total of 112 A350 aircraft with its fast-selling GEnx engine, based on the GE90 architecture. It will succeed GE's CF6 engine family, which the company states is the best-selling engine on wide-body aircraft. The GEnx is designed to provide significantly better fuel burn and payload performance than the CF6.

The GEnx is based on the highly successful GE90 architecture. It will succeed GE's CF6 engine family, which is the most reliable and best-selling engine on wide-body aircraft. It provides significantly better fuel burn and payload performance than GE's CF6 engines.

The composite-blade GEnx engine is designed to offer greater engine durability, weight reduction and lower operating costs. The fan blades will utilize GE90 composite technology that has performed well, with no routine on-wing maintenance required and no in-service issue for almost a decade. The GEnx will operate with 18 fan blades (50 percent fewer than the CF6) at noise levels lower than any large GE commercial engine.

Airbus has established an integrated certification schedule for the A350, which includes GEnx engine flight-testing in 2009, and aircraft/engine certification in 2010. GE has a full-time team of engineers at the Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, France, collaborating on the A350 program.

The GEnx also features a new combustor for efficient fuel mixing before ignition, resulting in significantly lower NOx levels -- designed to offer improved economy and reduced environmental impact, according to GE.

FMI: www.ge.com/en/product/business/aviation.htm