SAS Places $710 Million LEAP Order
June 20, 2011
- Engines will power 30 A320neo aircraft
- CFM bringing revolutionary technologies to A320neo
LE BOURGET, France - 20 June 2011 - SAS today announced that it has selected CFM International's advanced LEAP TM engine with an order to power 30 new Airbus A320neo aircraft scheduled to begin delivery in 2016. The engine order is valued at approximately $710 million U.S. at list price.
CFM International is a 50/50 joint company between Snecma (Safran group) and GE.
SAS, the multi-national carrier of Sweden, Norway and Denmark, operates scheduled flights to nearly 100 destinations throughout Scandinavia, Europe, Asia, and the U.S. with a fleet of 138 aircraft. The SAS fleet includes 84 CFM-powered aircraft and owns a total of nearly 190 CFM56 engines.
"There are several factors that weighed into our decision, but the leading-edge environmental technologies CFM has developed for the LEAP engine made it an easy choice," said Rickard Gustafson, president and CEO of SAS. "We know from experience the high level of customer support we will receive from CFM and look forward to introducing this great new engine into our fleet"
As a major European airline, SAS has long been at the forefront of adopting technologies that reduce the impact of aviation on the environment, as well as choosing efficient engines to power its fleet. For example, SAS was a launch customer for CFM's advanced double-annular combustor on the CFM56-7B and currently operates nearly 70 aircraft with these engines.
"Our relationship with SAS goes back more than 15 years," said Jean-Paul Ebanga, president and CEO of CFM International. "It is highly gratifying when an airline this stature places so much confidence in your products."
"We are pleased and honored that SAS have chosen to again make CFM its engine supplier of choice," said Gael Meheust, vice president of Sales for CFM. "They first chose the CFM56-7B to power Boeing 737 aircraft in the mid-1990s, then the CFM56-5C for its long-range A340s, and now the advanced LEAP engine for the A320neo. This truly validates the investment we make in every CFM product to ensure that they are the most reliable, fuel-efficient, environmentally responsible, cost effective engines we can build."
LEAP engines incorporate revolutionary technologies never before seen in the single-aisle aircraft segment. The new engine combines advanced aerodynamic design techniques, lighter, more durable materials, and leading-edge environmental technologies, making it a major breakthrough in engine technology. The 15 percent better engine fuel efficiency*, at current fuel prices, translates to as much as $1.6 million in fuel cost savings alone for customers per airplane, per year. LEAP technology will also achieve double-digit improvements in CO2 emissions and noise levels, all while providing the industry's best reliability and lowest maintenance costs.
The lower fuel burn also reduces CO2 emission by 15 percent, while LEAP's industry-leading combustor technology will reduce emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NOx), a greenhouse gas, by 50 percent compared to current requirements.
Further contributing to SAS's role as an environmentally responsible leader in Europe, the engine cuts noise by as much as 15 decibels, which will keep objectionable noise within the confines of the airport. In simple terms, this reduction is comparable to making a jack hammer operate as quietly as an alarm clock.
With a base of more than 500 customers, and more than 22,200 engines delivered, CFM has consistently delivered on its commitments, completing 21 engine/aircraft certifications on time and on specification. Since the first A320 was launched in 1985, CFM56 engines have been selected to power nearly 60 percent of all A320 family aircraft.
