GEOFF THOMAS
The world's 1,000th IAE V2500 engine (serial number V11000) made its maiden flight yesterday. One of two powering a United Airlines Airbus A320, it was shipped to Toulouse in early May for the fitting of the nacelle and further accessories and installation of the complete powerplant on the aircraft.
Once interior fitting-out of the aircraft has been completed in Hamburg, the aircraft will return to Toulouse for delivery to the airline in mid-July. With a fleet of 39 A319s and 74 A320s in service, United is IAE's largest airline customer, having taken delivery of the first V2500-A5 1993.IAE is a consortium comprising Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce, the Japanese Aero Engines Corporation and MTU Aero Engines. More than 670 V2500-powered aircraft have been delivered and the worldwide fleet has accumulated more than 16 million flying hours.
IAE is stepping up production to more than 300 units a year to accommodate a growing backlog of orders. V2500s are assembled at the manufacturing plants of two of the company¹s shareholders, Pratt & Whitney in Middletown, Connecticut, and Rolls-Royce in Derby, England.
Source: Flight Daily News
