Air show attendees flocked to the General Electric exhibit (hall 2, C137) yesterday for the official unveiling of the GEnx engine. The anticipation was palatable - and the response overwhelmingly enthusiastic - as GE took the wraps off a massive, gleaming example of the GEnx engines that will power Boeing 787 and 747-8 aircraft.
Noting that the GEnx has been in development since 2002, GE Aviation president and chief executive David Joyce heralded the event as "a huge deal". He says a 787 equipped with GEnx engines "for sure will fly" in the third quarter. This is in line with expectations and the state of the GE flight test programme.
"When Boeing announced it will be flying in the second quarter with Rolls' Trent 1000, we were going to be third quarter because of the sequence that we're in," he adds. Boeing is targeting a maiden flight for the 787 by the end of this month.