In one of the largest engine orders ever placed, US Airways has selected the CFM56-5B/P engine to power up to 400 new Airbus Industrie A319/A320/A321 aircraft. The order consists of 120 firm aircraft, 120 reconfirmable options, and 160 additional options. The value of the firm engine order alone is $1.4 billion.
The CFM56-5B/P is produced by CFM International (CFM), a 50/50 joint company between Snecma (Safran Group) of France and General Electric of the United States. CFM is the world's leading supplier of commercial transport aircraft engines.
US Airways is a long-time CFM customer, with 139 CFM56-3-powered Boeing 737-300 and -400 aircraft in service. Delivery of the first A320 is scheduled for 1998; if all options are exercised, deliveries will continue through the year 2009.
The CFM56-5 engine launched the A320 into revenue service in 1988. Since then, the fleet has logged more than 11 million flight hours and has proven to be one of the most reliable engines in the air. The advanced CFM56-5B/P that will power US Airways' new Airbus fleet dramatically reduces fuel consumption, providing operating airlines up to a 3 percent improvement in specific fuel consumption (SFC) compared to base CFM56-5B levels.
Developed specifically for the Airbus Industrie A320 family, the CFM56-5B/P has logged more than 30,000 flight hours since entering service last July, while maintaining a 99.94 percent dispatch reliability rate.
Overall, the CFM56-5 has been the engine of choice to power more than 60 percent of the Airbus A319/A320/A321 aircraft ordered to date.