|
The vast majority of the 737s have been powered
by technology with GE pedigree. CFM
International, a joint venture between GE and
Snecma (Safran), has been the exclusive jet
engine supplier for each new generation of the
aircraft ever since Boeing started making an
improved version of the plane, the Boeing
737-300, in 1984.
GE and Snecma launched their joint venture in
1974. The goal was to grow their presence in the
short-to-medium-range aircraft market dominated
by jet engines using the classic low-bypass
turbofan design, like Pratt & Whitney’s JT8D
engine.
CFM engineers developed a new high-bypass engine
similar to jet engines powering long-haul
aircraft like the Boeing 747, with improved fuel
consumption, reduced noise and quick turnaround
time at the airport.
Since
the engine, called the CFM56, was also bigger
than its predecessors and the 737 sits
relatively close to the ground, Boeing engineers
had to redesign the wing and suspend the engine
in front of it, rather than below. The solution
gives the engine its trademark oval opening.
|
