PARIS, FRANCE — Airbus and Boeing test CFM's "Open Fan Engine" in Mid-2020s, which promises lower carbon emissions.
Dave Calhoun, Boeing's Chief Executive Officer, underscored the environmental and efficiency benefits of the new technology this month, saying the advantages it brings in reducing emissions and fuel consumption are simply irrefutable.
European manufacturer Airbus, too, has expressed interest in the open fan innovation. In Paris on Friday, Airbus Chief Technology Officer Sabine Klauke revealed plans to conduct test flights of the open fan component of CFM's concept on an A380 superjumbo jet around the mid-2020s. Simultaneously, Boeing plans to evaluate another facet of the CFM design - a hybrid electric capability designed to conserve fuel - on a Saab 340 turboprop.
"It's no longer a hypothetical. It's reality," affirmed Mohamed Ali, Vice President of Engineering for GE Aerospace, during his Parisian visit.
On Monday, at the GE chalet at the Paris Air Show, Ali articulated a fervent case for the new design his team is championing. He opined that the conventional engine architecture is now reaching a point of diminishing returns in terms of its potential for significant fuel burn improvements.
According to Ali, by removing the protective casing or nacelle that currently envelops jet engines, the design allows for a substantially larger fan at the front, thereby generating increased thrust and dramatically improved fuel efficiency - gains he believes can't be realized any other way.
"It would be an injustice to the planet, the environment, and the industry, to let such an opportunity go unexplored," Ali concluded passionately.
