CFM has 10,000 LEAP engines on order, officials say

Officials at CFM International, the joint venture of Evendale-based GE Aviation and Snecma Moteurs of France, say orders for its upcoming LEAP engine are running strong.

Officials of West Chester-based CFM, in a presentation made ahead of next week’s Singapore Air Show, say they received 2,154 engine orders in 2015, Bloomberg News reports. CFM now has more than 10,000 LEAP engines on order. The company said it will be able to build more than 2,000 by 2020. GE officials said on a Jan. 22 conference call that introduction of the LEAP is on track for a midyear launch, Bloomberg noted.

The LEAP-1B is the sole engine used for the Boeing 737 MAX, which had its first test flight last month. The LEAP-1A is an engine option for the Airbus A320neo. The LEAP-1C is the sole Western engine for the Comac C919.

The engine is designed for maximum fuel efficiency and reduced emissions and noise. It features advanced materials such as ceramic matrix composites, which offer improved performance in high temperatures at much lower weight than traditional materials such as metal.

LEAP engines are being built at GE Aviation’s newest plant, which opened in 2015 in Lafayette, Indiana. The plant is minutes from Purdue University in West Lafayette, which has a history of collaboration with GE Aviation and General Electric Co. Workers at the 225,000-square-foot facility assemble the engine’s core and perform the complete engine’s final assembly.

GE Aviation is the world’s biggest jet-engine maker.