A CFM56-3B engine in service with Germania Flug, the German charter and regional carrier, has logged more than 25,000 flight hours on wing without a single shop visit.
The CFM56-3 is produced by CFM International, a 50/50 joint company of Snecma (Safran Group) of France and General Electric of the United States.
The engine, which is still on wing, was installed on a Germania Boeing 737-300 in 1988 has logged 25,168 hours and 9,644 cycles. The airline currently operates a fleet of 12 CFM56-powered 737s. In October 1997, Germania will become the first European airline to place the new CFM56-7-powered Boeing 737-700 into revenue service when it takes delivery of the first of 12 new aircraft.
In addition to the engines in Germania's fleet, 12 CFM56-3 engines in service with other airlines have logged more than 19,000 hours without a shop visit and all are still on wing.
Fleet wide, the average time to first shop visit for a CFM56 engine in 1995 was more than 12,300 hours and 9,100 cycles. This rate has continually improved since the first CFM56 engines were delivered in 1984, and newer engines are expected to average more than 14,000 hours and 10,000 cycles before their initial shop visit.