Company Watch - Rolls-Royce.

Jun 25, 2007

International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC) Chief Executive Steven Udvar-Hazy said on Tuesday that Airbus had frozen the basic design of its A350 model but he expected the plane maker to continue to optimize it. "I think the basic configuration is fixed and frozen but I think there is some optimization going on in the design and I think that will continue," Udvar-Hazy said at the Paris air show. "The engine is a big question" he said, referring to the fact GE Aviation was unwilling to offer an engine for the largest of the three versions, the A350-1000. Only Rolls-Royce is offering engines for the A350 currently. He also said the largest version of the plane would have "some different gear, engine and wing strengths" compared to the other two versions. "There will be some differences." ILFC is the world's largest aircraft lessor by fleet value and one of the largest buyers of wide-bodied planes. Jun 20, 2007

British engine maker Rolls-Royce has signed a USD$180 million deal with International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC) to supply its Trent engines to power five of ILFC's new Airbus A330s. Rolls-Royce said its engines would now power over 50 percent of ILFC's A330 fleet and that the first of the new aircraft was scheduled for delivery in 2009. Jun 18, 2007

Rolls-Royce said the Qatar Airways deal represents its largest ever firm civil engine order. Rolls rival General Electric has been in talks with Airbus about providing an alternative engine for the mid-sized long-range aircraft but has not yet committed to the plane. The order is worth USD$5.6 billion at list prices for Rolls-Royce, currently the only engine maker offering an engine for the Airbus A350 XWB model. Jun 18, 2007

Rolls Royce said it had won a USD$260 million share of a deal for International Aero Engines (IAE) to sell engines to China Eastern Airlines. The deal involves V2500 engines to power 30 Airbus twin-engined A320 series aircraft, Rolls said in a news release. IAE is a multinational firm which includes Rolls, Pratt & Whitney, Japanese Aero Engines and Germany's MTU Aero Engines. Jun 19, 2007

Rolls-Royce said that its Trent engine had been selected by Avianca, Aeroflot and lease company AerCap. Colombian national airline Avianca has chosen the Trent to power up to 30 jets in a deal worth up to USD$1.1 billion at list prices. Rolls-Royce said under the deal, its first for the Trent engine in Latin America, it would also provide 10 years of support for the engines. Aeroflot selected the Trent to power the Russian airline's new fleet of 10 leased Airbus planes in a deal worth around USD$600 million. Rolls-Royce said the deal was the first for its Trent engine in Russia and included a long-term service agreement. Dutch aircraft leasing company AerCap has ordered Trents to power 10 firm Airbus A330 plane orders and three options. Deliveries of the aircraft are due to begin in 2009. Jun 20, 2007

Rolls-Royce said it had won an order worth more than USD$500 million to supply engines for cargo planes for the US Army and US Air Force. The deal involves up to 180 engines for an initial 78 of the C-27J plane being produced by a team including L-3, Italy's Alenia Aeronautica and Boeing. The US military have said the Joint Cargo Aircraft program may involve up to 145 planes. Jun 20, 2007

Rolls-Royce reached a 10-year TotalCare services contract with Thai Airways covering the Trent 500s on 10 Airbus A340s. Jun 18, 2007

US Airways confirmed an order for 22 Airbus A350 XWB mid-sized jets on Monday and handed the European planemaker orders for another 70 planes in a package worth a total of USD$10 billion at list prices. The US carrier, which already operates the largest fleet of A320 family single-aisle aircraft, bought another 60 of the planes and signed up for 10 A330-200 wide-body jets, it said at the Paris air show. Rolls-Royce said it had sold engines worth USD$1.8 billion for the A350 part of the order. Jun 18, 2007

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