Virgin America has announced a deal with CFM to supply the CFM Leap56 engine for its Airbus A320NEO orders.  This is a nice launch for CFM and stands in contrast with order A320NEO orders that have listed Pratt PW1100G as their choice of engine.

What’s the Leap56 advantage?  It’s hard to say.  It’s possible that the Pratt & Whitney engine may have more future potential but right now it also has a lot of risk associated with it.  It’s a geared turbo fan that Pratt has really been working on for more than two decades in one form another.  It’s a design that many see risky given its complexity.  If it does turn out to be a robust engine with good lifecycle costs, it may well be the leader going forward.

But right now the CFM Leap56 offers the same performance with great reliability and reduced risk for the owner.  There have been a number of predictions that the Leap56 will be the sale leader in A320NEO sales over the long term.  Right now, we’re a long way away from seeing a sales leader in that aircraft category.

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