SINGAPORE Emirates, the Dubai-based international airline, today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the GE-P&W Engine Alliance for its GP7000 family of engines to power 22 firm and 10 option Airbus A380-800 aircraft.
Emirates Chairman, HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, signed the MOU at the Asian Aerospace Show in Singapore to buy the engines, which have a list price, including options, of approximately $1.5 billion (US). Also signing the agreement was Lloyd Thompson, president of the GE-P&W Engine Alliance.
Sheikh Ahmed said: "As Emirates grows to become a truly global airline, we need an engine to power our future A380 flagship over the world's biggest air routes. After exceptionally exhaustive studies of the various engines on offer, we have selected the Engine Alliance GP7000 as the one best suited to our present and future network.
"The GP7000 proudly bears the pedigree of two world leaders in engineering, and its specification, projected performance and price combined to convince us that it is the best deal for Emirates - technically, operationally and commercially."
Comprehensive negotiations are now taking place between Emirates and the Engine Alliance to finalize the General Terms Agreement (GTA).
The Emirates order is for GP7270 engines rated at 70,000 pounds (311 kN) of thrust powering 20 A380-800 passenger variant aircraft and GP7277 engines rated at 76,500 (340 kN) pounds of thrust powering the two freighters it has ordered.
Emirates was the world's first airline to place firm orders for the A380 and the first to put down a deposit, making its commitment at Britain's Farnborough Air Show. The airline now becomes the second customer for the GP7000 family, following Air France's launch order for 10 firm aircraft in May 2001.
At last year's Dubai Air Show, Emirates unveiled a stunning $15 billion (US) fleet expansion, increasing its A380s to 22 plus 25 new Boeing 777s, eight A340-600s and three A330s - a total of 58 aircraft and the largest order ever placed by the airline.
With the Emirates selection, the Engine Alliances GP7000 engine family now leads in engine orders on the A380 among airline customers, with 32 firm aircraft.
Emirates expects deliveries of its A380s to start from September 2006. By then, as one of the world's fastest-growing, most profitable, and innovative airlines, Emirates expects to be flying more than twice as many passengers as currently to all five continents, with the super-jumbo A380 operating the world's major routes from Dubai to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. Shiekh Ahmed described the Airbus A380 as the "aircraft of tomorrow, whose time has come today."
"This selection continues the success story of the Engine Alliance, Thompson said. GE Aircraft Engines (GEAE) and Pratt & Whitney (P&W) are setting new standards with this joint venture, and we couldnt be happier with our progress.
"We are extremely pleased that Emirates has chosen the Engine Alliance to power its A380 aircraft," said David Calhoun, president and chief executive officer of GEAE. "The Engine Alliance has a terrific engine and the team is looking forward to working closely with Emirates.
"Emirates has picked a truly great engine in the GP7000 family," said Louis R. Chênevert, president of P&W. "It combines the best technologies of two world leaders in propulsion to give the airlines outstanding value on their A380s."
The GP7000 offers the best combination of reliability and value, and is designed to deliver the lowest cost of ownership from service entry on the long-range missions of the A380, while achieving outstanding time on-wing. It benefits from the heritage of the GE90 and PW4000 families, which have accumulated 5.5 million hours in commercial service, while adding new technology.
The GP7000 has begun development and verification testing, including two core engines which demonstrated stall-free high-efficiency performance of the High Pressure Compressor (HPC). Component tests are ongoing, with the third core engine slated to go to test early next year to continually improve performance and mature technology. Aerodynamic rig tests of the two-stage high-pressure turbine (HPT) began in January 2002 and will follow with annular combustor sector rig tests to evaluate emissions and altitude relight characteristics.
P&W has successfully tested a 42-percent-scale GP7200 swept fan blade design on its Advanced Technology Fan Integrator (ATFI) demonstrator engine. Derived from three million hours of service experience on the PW4000-powered Boeing 777, the GP7200 hollow titanium fan blade with "swept" aerodynamics will have the same durability as the very successful PW4000 113-inch hollow titanium radial fan blade. The new blade design allows the Engine Alliance to deliver the quietest and best performing engine for the A380.
The Engine Alliance will begin detailed engine design in December 2002 and will run the first full engine test in second quarter of 2004. Current plans call for the type design to accumulate over 23,000 endurance cycles and 7,200 hours of operation on eight test engines prior to entry into service, exceeding normal standards for ETOPS-qualified engines.
The GP7200 is scheduled to be certified at 81,500 pounds takeoff thrust by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) of the European Economic Community in mid-2005. First flight on the A380 is scheduled for January 2006, followed by entry into service later that year.
Within the Engine Alliance, P&W is responsible for the fan, low pressure compressor, low pressure turbine, and accessory gearbox modules; GEAE is responsible for the engine core (HPC, combustor, and HPT) and control system modules.
The Engine Alliance, a 50/50 joint venture between GE Aircraft Engines and Pratt & Whitney, was formed in August 1996 to develop, manufacture, sell and support a family of modern technology engines for high-capacity, long-range aircraft. GEAE's share participants are Snecma Moteurs of France and MTU of Germany, while Pratt & Whitney has also retained MTU as a share participant. Visit the Engine Alliance online at: http://www.enginealliance.com.