| Type | Division |
|---|---|
| Industry | Aerospace |
| Founded | 1917[1] |
| Headquarters | Evendale, Ohio, United States[2] |
| Key people | David L. Joyce, President & CEO |
| Products | Aircraft engines Avionics (with Aviation Systems) |
| Revenue | US$18.7 billion (2009)[3] |
| Employees | 26,800 (2007)[4] 37,800 (with Aviation Systems)[4] |
| Parent | General Electric |
| Subsidiaries | Aviation Systems[5] Walter Engines[6] GE Honda (50%) CFM International (50%) Engine Alliance (50%) |
| Website | geaviation.com |
GE Aviation, a subsidiary of General Electric, is headquartered in Evendale, Ohio (a Cincinnati suburb). GE Aviation is the top supplier of aircraft engines in the world, and offers engines for the majority of commercial aircraft. GE Aviation is part of the General Electric conglomerate, which is one of the world's largest corporations. The division operated under the name of General Electric Aircraft Engines or GEAE until September 2005.
GE Aviation's main competitors in the engine market are Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney.
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General Electric had a long history in steam turbine work, dating back to the turn of the century. In 1903 they hired Sanford Alexander Moss, who, in time, started the development of turbosuperchargers at GE. This led to a series of record-breaking flights over the next ten years. At first the role of high-altitude flight was limited, but in the years immediately prior to WWII they became standard equipment on practically all military aircraft. GE was a world leader in this technology; most other firms concentrated on the mechanically simpler supercharger driven by the engine itself, while GE had spent considerable effort developing the exhaust driven turbo system that offered higher performance.
This work made them the natural industrial partner to develop jet engines when Frank Whittle's W.1 engine was demonstrated to Hap Arnold in 1941.[7] A production license was arranged in September, and several of the existing W.1 test engines shipped to the US for study, where they were converted to US manufacture as the I-A. GE quickly started production of improved versions; the I-16 was produced in limited numbers starting in 1942, and the much more powerful I-40 followed in 1944, which went on to power the first US combat-capable jet fighters, the P-80 Shooting Star.
Early jet engine work took place at GE's Syracuse, NY (steam turbine) and Lynn, MA (supercharger) plants, but soon concentrated at the Lynn plants.[8] On 31 July 1945 the Lynn plant became the "Aircraft Gas Turbine Division". GE was repeatedly unable to deliver enough engines for Army and Navy demand, and production of the I-30 (now known as the J33) was also handed to Allison Engines in 1944. After the war ended, the Army canceled its orders for GE-built J33s and turned the entire production over to Allison,[9] and the Syracuse plant closed.
These changes in fortune led to debate within the company about carrying on in the aircraft engine market. However, the engineers at Lynn pressed ahead with development of a new engine, the TG-180, which was designated J35 by the US military. Development funds were allotted in 1946 for a more powerful version of the same design, the TG-190. This engine finally emerged as the famed General Electric J47, which saw saw great demand for several military aircraft; a second manufacturing facility near Cincinnati was opened. J47 production ran to 30,000 engines by the time the lines closed down in 1956. Further development of the J47 by Patrick Clarke in 1957 led to the J73, and from there into the much more powerful J79. The J79 was GE's second "hit", leading to a production run of 17,000 in several different countries. Other successes followed, including the J85 and F404.
The TF39 was the first high-bypass turbofan engine to enter production.[10] Entered into the C-5 Galaxy contest in 1964 against similar designs from Curtiss-Wright and Pratt & Whitney, GE's entry was selected as the winner during the final down-select in 1965. This led to a civilian model, the CF6,[11] which was offered for the Lockheed L-1011 and McDonnell Douglas DC-10 projects. Although Lockheed later changed their engine to the Rolls-Royce RB211, the DC-10 continued with the CF6, and this success led to widespread sales on many large aircraft including the Boeing 747.
Another military-to-civilian success followed when GE was selected to supply engines for the S-3 Viking and A-10 Thunderbolt, developing a small high-bypass engine using technologies from the TF39. The resulting General Electric TF34 was adapted to become the General Electric CF34, whose wide variety of models powers many of the regional jets flying today.[12]
In 1974 GE entered into an agreement with Snecma of France to jointly produce a new mid-sized turbofan, which emerged as the CFM56. A 50/50 joint partnership was formed[13] with a new plant in Evendale, OH to produce the design. At first sales were very difficult to come by, and the project was due to be cancelled. Only two weeks before this was to happen, in March 1979, several companies selected the CFM56 to re-engine their existing Douglas DC-8 fleets.[14] In February 2008, CFM delivered their 18,000th engine of the CFM56 family.
The success of the CFM led GE to join in several similar partnerships, including Garrett AiResearch for the CFE CFE738, Pratt & Whitney on the Engine Alliance GP7000, and, more recently, Honda for the GE Honda Aero Engines small turbofan project. GE also continued development of their own lines, introducing new civilian models like the GE90, and military designs like the General Electric F110.
Then-GEAE (and competitor Rolls-Royce) were selected by Boeing to power its new 787. GE Aviation's offering is the GEnx, a development of the GE90. GE Aviation also has a two-year exclusivity on the Boeing 747-8.
The Lynn facility continues to assemble jet engines for the United States Department of Defense, subsidiary services and commercial operators. Engines assembled at this plant include the F404, F414, T700, and CFE738. The plant at Lynn also produces the -3 and -8 variants of the CF34 regional jet engine, the CT7 commercial turboprop power plant and commercial versions of the T700 turboshaft whichare also called the CT7.
The Evendale plant conducts final assembly for the CFM International's CFM56, CF6, as well as LM6000, and LM2500 power plants.
The Durham, North Carolina facility conducts final assembly for the GE90 and CF34 power plants. Crucial parts for these engines are crafted in secondary GE Aviation facilities, such as those in Bromont, Quebec; Hooksett, New Hampshire; Wilmington, North Carolina; Madisonville, Kentucky and Rutland, Vermont; where the engine blades and vanes are manufactured.
Smiths Group and General Electric announced on January 15, 2007 that the former was divesting Smiths Aerospace to the latter for GBP£2.4 billion (US$ 4.8 billion).[15] GE Aviation closed the transaction on May 4, 2007.[5] Smiths Aerospace, which was an important supplier, became an operating subsidiary of GE Aviation known as GE Aviation Systems. This acquisition will reportedly give the combined unit the clout to resist pricing pressures from its two largest customers, Boeing Commercial Airplanes and EADS/Airbus.[15] Analysts further assert that it enables General Electric to acquire assets similar to those it desired in its failed bid for Honeywell in 2000.[15]
Along with the purchase of Smiths Aerospace, the purchase included opening the first University Development Center in Houghton, Michigan, in the effort to work with University Students to provide training in engineering and software development. The program has performed well and GE Aviation has announced further UDC openings at Kansas State University.
In July 2008, governments in the Persian Gulf reached agreements with GE to expand engine maintenance operations there. The Wall Street Journal reported that Mubadala Development Company, which owns Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies, an overhaul and maintenance company, signed an agreement worth an estimated $8 billion with GE; Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies will maintain and overhaul GE engines used in commercial aircraft purchased by airlines based in the Persian Gulf.[16]
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