GEnx engines power Boeing's newly launched 747-8 Programme

Cargolux and Nippon Cargo Airlines (NCA) ordered up to 34 747-8 Freighters. Cargolux has ordered 10 firm, 10 option 747-8 freighters; NCA has ordered eight firm, six option 747-8 Freighters. Deliveries to both these customers will begin in 2009.

After a lengthy technical evaluation, Boeing earlier this year had selected the GEnx as the sole engine for the 747-8 aircraft. To date, about 400 GEnx engines have been ordered to power the Boeing's 787 and 747-8 aircraft, and the Airbus A350 aircraft. The value on these engine orders is more than $4.5 billion.

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.

The GEnx provides significantly better fuel burn and payload performance than GE's CF6 engines. It is the world's only jet engine with 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 remarkably well, with no in-service issues 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. The GEnx also features a new combustor for efficient fuel mixing before ignition, resulting in significantly lower NOx levels.

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