CFM International delivered the first two production engines to Airbus on April 2nd, two days ahead of schedule. This delivery paves the way for installation on the first aircraft destined for a customer and entry into service during the second half of 2016. The name of the customer who will receive the first A320neo equipped with CFM engines will be announced at a later date. Final assembly of the engines was completed at the Snecma (Safran) site in Villaroche, .
“It's a very proud day for us,” said Francois Bastin, Executive Vice President of CFM International. “The team has done an incredible job to keep this program on track. The engine continues to perform exceptionally well in flight tests and we can't wait for our airline customers to run this engine in their fleets. ”
The LEAP-1A flew for the first time on the Airbus A320neo on May 19, 2015. The second Airbus A320neo was added to the test program in September last year, and in February 2016, the LEAP engine was the first to power the new A321neo . To date, the three aircraft have logged a combined total of 285 flights and over 800 hours of flight testing.
The LEAP-1A, which equips the Airbus A319neo, A320neo and A321neo, features the most advanced technologies in the aircraft engine industry, including a new 3-D fabric made of carbon that covers the front fan blades; a takeoff debris rejection system; Twin-Annular in the combustion chamber that also includes fuel injector nozzles with new pulse-sensor technology, ceramic composites in the high-pressure turbine matrix and titanium aluminide (Ti-Al) in low-pressure turbine blades .
The engine will provide operators with a double-digit improvement in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions compared to the current CFM 56-7B, along with the manufacturer achieving dramatic reductions in engine noise and exhaust emissions. .
