General Electric GE90

GE90

NASA GE90 airflow simulation

General Electric GE90 is a family of high-bypass turbofan engines built by General Electric Aircraft Engines (GEAE) for the Boeing 777, with thrust ranging from 74,000 to 115,000 lb_f (329 to 512 kN). It was first introduced in November 1995 on British Airways' 777s, and is only available on the 777. The engine is one of three options for the 777-200, -200ER, and -300, and the exclusive engine of the -200LR and -300ER.

The GE90 series are physically the largest engines in aviation history. They are also the most powerful, as GE90-115B holds the Guinness Book of Records for the highest thrust, 127,900 lb_f (569 kN), though it is rated at 115,300 lb_f (513 kN). This thrust record was accomplished inadvertently as part of a one hour triple red-line engine stress test. In order to accommodate the increase in torsional stresses an entirely new steel alloy, GE1014, had to be created and then machined to extreme tolerances.

At least one technical paper presented on behalf of one of GE's project partners indicates that further thrust improvement programs will be promoted should a market for higher thrusts arise. For comparison purposes, the Boeing 747-400's largest engines produce roughly 65,000 lb_f (289 kN) of thrust. It is therefore likely that the next version of Boeing's 777 will be powered with a later version of this engine and will produce twice the thrust of the most powerful fitted to the venerable 747.

Claims have been made that a single engine moves enough air to empty a building the size of the Madison Square Garden in one minute. The diameter of the engine (3.43 m) and nacelle are larger than the fuselage of a Boeing 737 (3.4 m).

They can only be airfreighted in assembled form by outsize cargo aircraft such as the Antonov An-124 'Condor', presenting unique problems if a 777 is stranded due to emergency diversions. If the fan is removed from the core, then they may be shipped on a 747 Freighter. As a consequence, it incurs high preventative maintenance costs to minimize such risks. On December 17, 2005 a GE90-94B failed on an Air France 777 flying from Seoul to Paris resulting in an unscheduled landing in Irkutsk, Siberia. A replacement engine was flown via an An-124 and the engines were exchanged. The cause of the failure is still under investigation [1].

A fan blade from the GE90-115B has been placed on display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, New York.

External links

GE90-115B fanblade, on display at New York's Museum of Modern Art.

* It's Great Design Too: World's Biggest Jet Engine Fan Blade at The Museum of Modern Art.
* Official site.