GE Engine Could Help Boost A350-1000

Airbus is coming under pressure from a key A350XWB customer to boost the capability of its largest variant, which could be the opening for GE to return to the program and rival the incumbent Rolls-Royce Trent XWB with a more powerful engine. Emirates, whose orders for 70 A350s include 20 for the 350-seat -1000 variant, wants Airbus to boost the payload/range to enable the aircraft to operate comfortably between Dubai and Los Angeles year-round in its specification. This route is currently served by the ultra-long-range Boeing 777-200LR. The A350-1000’s direct rival is the 777-300ER, of which Emirates has 101 in service or on order. Ultimately the airline needs to order significantly more than 20 aircraft in the A350-1000 category but has been waiting to see what Boeing does to upgrade or replace the 777 and how Airbus evolves the -1000, which will be the last of three A350 family members to be developed. The A350-1000’s design freeze was due to be reached in mid-2010, but this slipped as Airbus threw resources at developing the first variant, the -900. However with service entry with launch customer Qatar Airways set for late 2015, Airbus aims to complete detailed design by the end of 2011 and observers believe that Emirates could yield significant influence with the promise of a major increase in its -1000’s orders. “We’re finding that the smallest aircraft that’s useful to us needs to be 340 seats,” Emirates Airline president Tim Clark told Bloomberg News. “We’re trying to persuade Airbus to realign the A350-1000 more toward the ER, increasing both its capacity and its range.” Clark says that as currently defined, the A350-1000 in Emirates specification is unable to operate the Dubai-Los Angeles route direct. Speaking to Aviation Week, he says: “Dubai-Los Angeles with a payload of 45 tonnes [99,000lb] would be about right.” As currently proposed, the A350-1000 will be powered by a 92,000lb thrust version of the Trent XWB, but Clark believes that to meet the Emirates mission requirements the aircraft will need a minimum of 100,000-105,000lb thrust. Industry sources indicate that with the Trent XWB likely to need a new core to achieve this level of thrust, Airbus could entice GE onto the program to offer a derate of the 777-200LR/300ER’s GE90-115B engine, which has a nominal thrust rating of 110,000-115,000lb. GE was the sole supplier on the original A350, but dropped out when Airbus re-launched the aircraft in 2006 as an all-new design and Rolls joined the program. Although Airbus currently holds orders for almost 600 Trent-powered A350s, only 75 of these are for the -1000 version, and at an investor forum in November chief operating officer Fabrice Bregier indicated that GE could supply an engine for the largest variant: “If GE wanted to be back on board we would be very pleased,” he said. “If they do something interesting for the -1000 later then we can always have a look at it.” GE, which is still working the business case, says it “continues to discuss the A350-1000 with Airbus as the aircraft’s specifications evolve.” Over 85 % of the A350-1000’s order book is held by Middle East carriers including Emirates (20), Etihad Airways (25) and Qatar Airways (20). The other customer is South Korean network carrier Asiana which has 10 on order.