Julian Moxon/Paris
General Electric and Airbus Industrie are in "intense" negotiations on a new, exclusive, very-high-bypass-ratio, power plant for the stretched, re-engined, A340-500/600. Airbus vice-president for strategic planning, Adam Brown, says that the US manufacturer is offering an "extremely exciting" power plant solution for the A340 involving a 401mm-diameter fan yielding a bypass ratio of 9.4 - higher than any other in-service turbofans.
GE declines to comment on the 240-270kN (55,000-60,000lb)-thrust engine, saying that, while discussions are at an "advanced stage", there are still "significant economic issues" remaining to be agreed. "The deal is not closed yet," says a source with the company, adding that such an engine "-must make business sense".
Brown says that authorisation to market the growth A340 is "imminent". The consortium would then offer the aircraft, subject to a launch decision, which would have to occur in around six months if the proposed 2001 in-service date is to be met. Failure to agree with GE on a deal covering some 20 years as exclusive engine supplier would, however, mean significant delays to the programme. "We would have to look at other options," says the European consortium.
According to Brown, both new versions will be offered to airlines at "about $12 million less than the Boeing 777-300", which has a sticker price of $143-149 million. The A340-600 is stretched by 20 fuselage frames over the basic aircraft and could fly 380 passengers over a range of 13,690km (7,400nm), while the -500, essentially a shortened, 320-seat, version of the -600, would have an ultra-long range of 15,350km.
GE is in the difficult position of being pressed to launch several engines at once. It is discussing with Pratt &Whitney the GP7000 engine for the Boeing 747X and Airbus A3XX, as well as a growth 445kN version of the GE90 and a new derivative of the CF34 regional-aircraft turbofan. A source says: "GE is having a hard time deciding on launching these engines. In today's market, the margins are virtually non-existent." The A340-500/-600 is seen as a replacement for the Boeing 747-100/-200 "Classic". Brown believes that the -500 will take "about two-thirds" of the 600-aircraft market foreseen for the two versions.
Source: Flight International
