GE Aviation

--LYNN, MASSACHUSSETTS - A major milestone for GE Aircraft Engines' CF34-8C1 program has been accomplished with the award of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Part 33 FAR engine type certificate, signifying the engine design meets all relevant federal aviation requirements.

Receipt of the FAA type certificate represents the culmination of three years of rigorous testing of components and the core engine, as well as full engine testing that included: crosswinds, emissions, noise and fan blade-out testing; bird, hail, ice-slab and water ingestion; altitude performance testing on GE's Boeing 747 flying testbed at Mojave, California; and flight testing on Bombardier's CRJ700 Series airliner.

The CF34-8C1 engine has been selected as the exclusive powerplant for the CRJ700 Series aircraft, currently undergoing flight testing leading to FAA certification in late 2000.

"This is certainly a major achievement for the total GE CF34-8C1 program team, including revenue-sharing participants and our suppliers," said Frank Klaus, general manager of GE Aircraft Engines' Small Commercial Engine Operation. "To set a very demanding goal some 30 months ago and reach it ahead of schedule is not only testimony to the soundness of the -8C1 but also to the performance of the team we've put together, which continues to work to ensure the success of this program."

The first of GE's CF34-8 series engines to receive FAA certification, the -8C1 model is rated at 12,679 pounds thrust at normal takeoff and 13,790 pounds thrust at maximum takeoff/auxiliary power reserve conditions. Other CF34-8 Series engines in development include the -8D and -8E models for, respectively, the Fairchild Aerospace 728JET and Embraer ERJ170 aircraft.