Iberia Airlines of Spain today took delivery of the first of eight Airbus Industrie A340-300 aircraft powered by CFM56-5C engines.
CFM56 engines are produced by CFM International, a 50/50 joint company of Snecma (Safran Group) of France and General Electric of the United States.
The airline, which already operates a fleet of 22 Airbus A320 aircraft powered by the CFM56-5A, will take delivery of three more long-range, four-engine Airbus A340s this year. The remaining four aircraft will be delivered between 1998 and 2000. In addition, Iberia holds options on four more A340s that would be delivered after the year 2000 should the options be exercised.
The CFM56-5C, the exclusive powerplant for the A340, has logged more than 1.7 million flight hours in its first three years of revenue service. The engine is rated from 31,200 to 34,000 pounds (139 to 151 kN) thrust for the A340 and currently maintains a shop visit rate of .030, an in-flight shutdown rate of .006, and a dispatch reliability rate of 99.80.
CFM International is the world's largest producer of commercial jet engines with total orders for more than 11,000 engines valued at about $40 billion. There are currently 150 CFM56-powered A340s in service or on order with 26 customers worldwide.