LEAP: Foundational Technology Work for the Power of the Future
For 35 years CFM has pursued new technologies that will give customers operational benefit and safeguard the environment.
Now we’re at a pivotal time in aviation design. The airplanes that will replace today’s narrowbody aircraft must fly cleaner, quieter and be more fuel-efficient than ever before. Meeting these demands will require a quantum leap in technology across the board.
CFM is going after front-to-back engine advances as part of the LEAP (Leading Edge Aviation Propulsion) program – our most extensive technology investment ever. Engineers are evaluating sophisticated composite materials, next-generation 3D aerodynamics and low-emissions combustion techniques.
The LEAP-X turbofan is the first product to emerge from the LEAP program. This revolutionary engine could be certified by 2016. Expect it to produce 50 - 60 percent less NOx, 16 percent less CO2 emissions, burn up to 16 percent less fuel and fly quieter. All compared to today’s best CFM56 engine.
Since volatile fuel prices dictate that we keep our options open, we are pursuing parallel architectures for our next engine. LEAP technologies could also be applied to an open rotor engine for a dramatic, up to 26 percent decrease in fuel burn compared to today’s CFM56.
But whether the LEAP-X turbofan or open-rotor architecture is the way forward, our next engine will be heavily rooted in the materials, aerodynamics and combustion technologies we’re developing under the LEAP umbrella.