JetBlue has selected the PW1100G Geared Turbo Fan engine to power the 40 A320neo aircraft it has on order.
Already a customer for the IAE V2500 engine on its existing A320 fleet, this order keeps JetBlue a customer of PW, which recently acquired a controlling interest in IAE. Â A long-term maintenance agreement was also signed as an integral element of the transaction.
PW’s purchase of the Rolls-Royce ownership of IAE gives PW flexibility to rework any maintenance agreement IAE had with JBLU, though it is not known if this was part of the transaction. CFM has used this process–reworking CFM56 maintenance contracts–to help win LEAP orders in at least one case (Republic/Frontier).
PW beat out the CFM international LEAP engine in this competition, and PW has now won orders for 410 A320neo aircraft.
With an appearance by JBLU CEO David Barger in a recent television commercial for GECapital, which only funds GE powered aircraft, there was some speculation that JetBlue might switch from the PW to CFM family, augmenting the GE powered Embraer 190 fleet it operates. Â But in this case, JetBlue’s evaluation favored PW. Â JetBlue will take delivery of its first A320neo in 2018.
The transaction includes 6 spare engines in addition to the 80 on the aircraft, and has a value at list prices of $1.03 billion.
Maintenance for the Jetblue V2500-Fleet is done by MTU, not by PW.