United Airlines and Pratt & Whitney have announced that the airline will use the PW1100G engine for its order of 70 Airbus A321neo and 50 A321XLR aircraft.
With the carrier’s first A321neos scheduled to arrive in 2023, United Airlines selected the PW1100G over the CFM International LEAP-1A, the other engine available to Airbus A320neo family aircraft.
In total, per the airline’s Q1 2023 United States (US) Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) filings, United Airlines should take delivery of 12 A321neos in 2023, with 31 more to follow in 2024. After 2024, Airbus is scheduled to deliver 27 A321neo and 50 A321XLR aircraft.
“United and Pratt & Whitney share a celebrated history as pioneers of commercial air travel, as well as a commitment to more sustainable aviation as we look forward,” said Rick Deurloo, the President of Commercial Engines at Pratt & Whitney. According to Deurloo, the engines – also known as the Geared Turbofan (GTF) – will enable United Airlines to maximize the performance of its A321neo and A321XLR aircraft, “delivering industry-leading payload, range, and environmental performance for those aircraft types”.
Currently, United Airlines has no aircraft from the A320neo aircraft family. However, it operates 81 Airbus A319ceo and 99 A320ceo, which are powered by the International Aero Engines (IAE) V2500 engines.
According to Pratt & Whitney, IAE is “a global partnership of aerospace leaders including Pratt & Whitney, Pratt & Whitney Aero Engines International GmbH, Japanese Aero Engines Corporation and MTU Aero Engines”.
In total, United Airlines has 360 IAE V2500 engines in its fleet, according to ch-aviation.com data.
