LEAP-1A engines to power Lion Group's 174 A320neo aircraft

Singapore –Transportation Partners, the leasing arm of Lion Group, and CFM International have finalized an order for 348 LEAP-1A engines to power 174 firm Airbus A320neo aircraft. The aircraft order was announced in March 2013.

 

The value of the installed and spare engines is $4.9 billion at list price.

 

"This is a great extension of the partnership we have built with CFM over the past 15 years” said John Duffy, chief operating officer of Transportation Partners. “In addition to the world-class operating economics and reliability that the LEAP engine will bring to our fleet, LEAP’s strong footprint in Asia and the impressive strides it has made in North America and Europe augments well with our strategic growth objectives.”

 

CFM is providing project management and expert advice starting from design, construction, and commissioning for Lion Group’s new engine maintenance and test cell facility, Batam Aero Technic (BAT) in Batam, Indonesia. When completed, the facility will have maintenance and overhaul capability for the CFM56 and LEAP engines in the airline’s fleet. CFM will also provide leadership and management training to the employees and affiliated companies.

 

"We are delighted to take this next step with Transportation Partners and further expand an already great relationship,” said Jean-Paul Ebanga, president and CEO of CFM International. "We are excited to bring the benefits of the LEAP-1A engine to their portfolio and believe it will prove to be a great asset for them. Thousands of hours of testing have confirmed that the engine is meeting its performance specifications and that it will deliver the reliability, durability, and low maintenance costs they have come to rely on from CFM products.”

 

“We are thrilled that Transportation Partners has entrusted its future single-aisle fleet to the new LEAP engine” said Chaker Chahrour, vice president and general manager of Global Sales & Marketing for CFM parent company GE Aviation. “This management team has done a tremendous job in putting this company in the perfect position for sustainable growth over the long term and we are honored to be part of it.”

 

Lion Group, based in Jakarta, Indonesia, has been a CFM customer since the year 2000 and its entire single aisle narrow body fleet of 642 aircraft (in service or on order) is powered by CFM engines. The airline operates CFM56-powered Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 aircraft and has orders for both the LEAP-1A and LEAP-1B models for the A320neo and 737 MAX, respectively.

 

The LEAP-1A continues its highly-successful flight test program on the A320neo, accumulating more than 1,000 engine flight hours on more than 200 flights to date. The engine is on track to enter commercial service around mid-2016.

 

The advanced technology that makes up the LEAP-1A engine will result in a highly reliable, fuel-efficient powerplant for the new Airbus A320neo (new engine option). The engine incorporates many industry firsts, including the 3D woven carbon fiber composite fan blade and case; a debris rejection system; fourth-generation 3D aerodynamics; commercial use of ceramic matrix composites (CMCs); a combustor design featuring fuel nozzles made using additive manufacturing; and light-weight titanium aluminide airfoils. The lower weight and higher durability these components will offer a 15% improvement in fuel efficiency, with an equivalent reduction in CO2 emissions; a 50% margin to new emissions regulations; and a lower noise signature. LEAP engines are a product of CFM International, a 50/50 joint company between Snecma (Safran) and GE.