EVENDALE, OH -- China Eastern Airlines has selected GE-Aviation's GEnx engine to power its 15 Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.
The value of the GEnx engines ordered is approximately $370 million. Aircraft delivery will begin in June 2008. China Eastern has also reached a 15-year OnPointSM Solutions maintenance agreement with GE for its GEnx fleet.
With this order, China Eastern Airlines is the fourth Chinese airline to select the GEnx engine for its 787 fleet.
China Eastern, based in Shanghai, is one of the three largest airlines in China and the largest GE/CFM customer in China. The airline will deploy the new 787s for its expanding international routes.
"We have selected the GEnx engine to power our Boeing 787 fleet based on a comprehensive evaluation of products and technologies," said Mr. Luo Cao Geng, President of China Eastern Airlines. "We are expecting a long and very close cooperation with GE in operating and maintaining our Boeing 787 fleet as one of the best fleets in the world."
"We are excited about China Eastern Airlines' selection of the GEnx engine," said Scott Donnelly, President and CEO of GE-Aviation. "China Eastern Airlines and GE have a long-standing relationship, and this selection attests to the confidence the airline has in our products and services."
The GEnx is the best-selling engine for the Boeing 787. Selected for three new wide-body aircraft under development, the GEnx has orders exceeding 750 engines.
Based on the highly successful GE90 architecture, the engine will succeed GE's CF6 engine family, which is the most reliable and best-selling engine on wide-body aircraft. It provides significantly better specific fuel consumption and payload performance than GE's CF6 engines. Testing began earlier this year on the GEnx engine, with engine certification scheduled for 2007.
The GEnx engine is the world's only jet engine with both a front fan case and fan blades made of composites, which provide for 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 issues for more than 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. The GEnx also features a new combustor for efficient fuel mixing before ignition, resulting in significantly lower oxides of nitrogen (NOx) levels.
The GEnx is part of GE's "ecomagination" product portfolio--GE's commitment to develop new, cost-effective technologies that enhance customers' environmental and operating performance.
GE - Aviation, an operating unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), is one of the world's leading manufacturers of jet engines for civil and military aircraft. GE also is a world-leading provider of maintenance and support services for jet engines.
SMOnPoint is a service mark of General Electric Company.