It has quietly been leaked in the last few months that CFM is falling short on Specific Fuel Consumption for the Leap-1A and -1B programs, with the
-1B being far more serious.
The Leap-1A is one of two engine options for the A320neo family. It currently stands around 2% short of sfc goals.
The -1B is the sole engine for the 737 Max. It currently stands around 4-5% short of goals. First flight for the Max is planned for 2017. With the
engine falling that short this close to eis, that's a lot of ground to make up. They may have to release several PIPs to get up to where Boeing
promised.
The French are some of the most criminally underrated engineers on the planet.
The Japanese and the Germans always get the fanfare, and the Brits and Russians have all the romance, and the Americans get to design and build all
the cool stuff. But the French, when they get it right, they design some of the best civilian market/transport sector stuff on the
planet.
edit on 5-5-2016 by Barnalby because: (no reason given)
That it does. It just makes me happy to see one of the smaller European engine manufacturers staying alive through collaboration with an American
giant. Too many cool little engine companies like Orenda, Bristol-Siddeley, or Napier went down the tubes in the 1960s and it's kinda heartwarming to
me that SNECMA found a way to stay alive.