Joint venture pulls ahead of rival Rolls-Royce in firm orders and commitments to power Airbus A380
Engine Alliance has stormed into the lead in the battle to supply engines for the Airbus A380 following confirmation of the deal between the General Electric/Pratt & Whitney joint venture and Emirates, first revealed by Flight International (5-11 February).Emirates has signed a $1.5 billion memorandum of understanding for 88 GP7200s plus 10 spare engines to power the 22 A380s it has on firm order. The Dubai-based airline says it will become the first GP7200 operator in September 2006. Singapore Airlines is due to be the first A380 operator, with scheduled delivery of its Rolls-Royce Trent 900-powered examples in March 2006.
Selection of the GP7200 over the Trent 900 is a blow to the UK manufacturer, which was the incumbent supplier at Emirates on its Airbus A330s, A340-500s and Boeing 777s.
The deal also puts Engine Alliance ahead of R-R on the A380 in terms of firm aircraft. Of the 97 A380 firm orders and commitments, 32 are GP7200-powered (10 for Air France and 22 Emirates) and 28 are Trent-powered (12 for Qantas, 10 for Singapore Airlines and six for Virgin Atlantic). Engine competitions remain for 15 FedEx Express A380s, five aircraft for International Lease Finance, 15 for Lufthansa and two for Qatar Airways.
Emirates chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum says the GP7200 was selected as it is "the best deal for Emirates. The performance of the GP7000 will support the long-range mission of the A380s" on Dubai to New York and Sydney routes, he adds.
Observers note that R-R's share price has not fallen on the Emirates news, which suggests that the manufacturer has made clear to analysts that it declined to match the terms offered by Engine Alliance.
Source: Flight International
