based low-cost carrier Ryanair today announced that it has placed an order for additional CFM56-7 engines to power 70 firm, 70 option Boeing 737-800 aircraft. The firm engine order is valued at approximately $900 million at list price.
The CFM56-7 is the newest member of the CFM56 engine family produced by CFM International, a 50/50 joint company between Snecma Moteurs (Safran Group) of France and General Electric Company. With more than 14,500 engines in service, CFM is the world's leading aircraft engine supplier.
Ryanair first became a CFM customer in 1998 with an order for 28 CFM56-7-powered 737s. In 2002, the airline followed that up with an order for 100 additional airplanes. Pending shareholder approval of the order, Ryanair will take delivery of the new aircraft between 2008 and 2012. The airline's total CFM56-7-powered 737 order book now stands at 225 firm, 193 option aircraft. By the end of 2005, Ryanair will have 100 737-800s in service, operating on routes throughout Europe from hubs in Dublin, London-Stansted, Frankfurt-Hahn, and Brussels-Charleroi.
The CFM56-7 engine is the exclusive powerplant for its 737-600/-700/-800/-900 family of aircraft and the engine provides operators with substantial benefits, including dramatically lower operating costs, better performance, higher reliability, lower noise and emissions and improved operability versus the CFM56-3 for the classic 737 series. These advantages make the CFM56-7-powered 737 ideally suited for low-cost operators such as Ryanair.