FADEC Alliance to provide 777X GE9X engine controls
Above: The GE9X engine for the Boeing 777X will feature FADECs designed and produced exclusively by FADEC Alliance.
GE Aviation’s all new GE9X engine for the Boeing 777X will feature full-authority digital electronic controls (FADEC) designed and produced by FADEC Alliance, a joint venture formed by FADEC International and GE.
The systems — consisting of a digital computer, called an engine control unit and its related accessories — control all aspects of aircraft engine performance, such as engine fuel flow and variable engine geometries.
“This contract continues FADEC International’s business relationship with GE onto the next generation of aircraft,” said Dennis Slattery, board member of FADEC Alliance and director of engine systems at BAE Systems. “Through the collaborations between BAE Systems, Safran Electronics & Defense, formerly Sagem and GE, we have more than 30 years of experience developing engine controls, with an installed base of more than 25,000 engines.”
FADEC International (a BAE Systems and Safran joint venture), has established the FADEC Alliance joint venture with GE to develop, produce, and support FADECs for aircraft engines and related technologies.
FADEC Alliance will be the exclusive FADEC supplier for the GE9X engine, which is the sole engine for the 777X. FADEC Alliance will be responsible for the design, manufacture, and aftermarket support of the system. The partnership leverages the combined experience of FADEC International and its member companies, which have supplied FADEC systems to GE since 1984.
The GE9X will be the most fuel-efficient engine GE has ever produced on a per-pounds-of-thrust basis. It follows the highly successful GE90-115B engine that entered service in 2004.The 777X is Boeing’s newest family of twin-aisle airplanes that builds on the passenger-preferred and market-leading 777. It will be the largest and most efficient twin-engine jet in the world. The 777X is scheduled to begin production in 2017, and first delivery is scheduled for 2020.
Development and production of the FADECs will occur across multiple BAE Systems and Safran sites.
