Etihad Airways selects GE Aviation as engine partner for Boeing fleet order
17-Nov-2013 Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, today announced the purchase of 127 GE Aviation engines to power its 56 new Boeing aircraft. The order includes installed and spare engines, and future service support.
The announcement was made by James Hogan, Etihad Airways' President and Chief Executive, and David Joyce, GE Aviation's President and Chief Executive Officer, at the Dubai Air Show, in tandem with the airline's Boeing order.
The deal is for 57 GE9X engines which will power Etihad Airways' 25 new Boeing 777X aircraft, 68 GEnx-1B engines for the airline's 30 new Boeing 787-10 aircraft, and two GE90-115B engines which will be used on its new Boeing 777-200F freighter. The aircraft are scheduled for delivery from 2018.
Mr Hogan said: "This order demonstrates Etihad Airways' commitment to operating one of the most technically advanced and fuel efficient fleets in the industry, now and in the future.
"Our business succeeds by establishing long term strategic partnerships to ensure we can offer our customers the best. This deal allows us to do that."
He said the deal would also provide direct economic benefits domestically and internationally.
"This deal is good for Etihad Airways, it is good for GE and it is also good for economic development both in the UAE and in the USA. In the United States, this order translates into a direct impact on America's gross domestic product and supports employment throughout the aerospace supply chain."
In addition to the main engine deal, Etihad Airways has signed a 15-year OnPoint solution agreement with GE, valued at US$ 8 billion, to cover all the engines in the order. OnPoint solutions are customised service agreements tailored to the operational and financial needs of each customer for any size fleet. These agreements are designed to help lower airlines' cost of ownership and maximise the use of assets.
Mr Joyce said: "We are honoured that Etihad Airways has selected GE to play a significant role in the airline's expansion efforts.
"GE's wide-body engine strategy builds on the solid foundation that we began with our GE90 engines, was advanced with new technologies in the outstanding GEnx and will evolve further with the new GE9X engine, which will be the largest and most fuel efficient engine GE has ever designed and manufactured."
The GE9X engine for Boeing's 777X aircraft will offer a 10 per cent improvement in fuel burn over today's GE90-115B.
The GEnx engine family is the fastest-selling engine in GE Aviation history, with more than 1,300 engines on order. Compared to GE's CF6 engine, the GEnx offers up to 15 per cent better fuel consumption, translating to a 15 per cent reduction in CO2. It also reduces NOx gases by as much as 55 per cent below today's regulatory limits and other regulated gases by as much as 90 per cent.
Based on the ratio of decibels to pounds of thrust, the GEnx is the quietest engine GE produces due to the large, more efficient fan blades that operate at a slower tip speed, resulting in about 40 per cent lower noise levels.
More than 1,500 GE90-115B engines have been ordered by customers for their Boeing 777-300ERs, 777-200LR and 777 freighters.
The GEnx and GE90-115B engines are part of GE's "ecomagination" product portfolio-GE's commitment to implementing innovative, cost-effective technologies that enhance the customers' environmental and operating performance.