Engine maker CFM International, owned by General Electric and Safran, expects deliveries of its LEAP engine family to be back on schedule by the middle of the year, GE said at the company’s Q4 presentation.
CFM delivered 1.118 LEAPs to Airbus, Boeing and Comac, including 379 or 90% more during Q4. Deliveries are still some four weeks behind schedule, compared to four to five weeks last Spring when both quality issues with a blade coating and production delays manifested themselves. This caused Airbus and Boeing lots of headache and back-loaded their A320neo and 737 MAX delivery schedules to Q4 and December.
Of the tried and trusted CFM56, 1.044 were delivered in 2018, so the LEAP outclassed its predecessor here for the first time. In 2019 this is expected to be reduced by half as the 737NG near the end of its cycle.
Order intake was strong in 2018, with 3.337 engines added to the book: 126 CFM56s and 3.211 LEAPs. This brings the total orders for the new engine since 2011 to 17.275 worth $250bln, including spares. On the A320neo CFM claims a 58% market share over its main rival, the Pratt & Whitney PW1100 Geared Turbofan family.
CFM targets 1.800 LEAP deliveries this year, ramping-up production to 2.000 next year. Production issues also delayed GE’s and Safran’s cost position, which nevertheless has improved 40% over the last two years. The program should break even around 2021, says GE.
In 2018 GE Aviation’s revenues including commercial and military engines grew 13% to $30.566bln, segment profit +20% to $6.466bln.
CFM delivered 1.118 LEAP engines in 2018, compared to 1.044 CFM56’s. (Safran/Pulse Line)
