2023-06-22 15:19:00
On the Safran stand at the Paris Air Show, June 21, 2023. JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP
This year, on the occasion of the 54th edition of the Paris Air Show, which takes place from June 19 to 25, aircraft manufacturers, engine manufacturers and subcontractors have a modest triumph. With the notable exception of the historic order for 500 A320neos placed by the Indian low-cost airline IndiGo, no contract gave rise to a flashy demonstration. The French engine manufacturer Safran was no exception to this brand new rule.
“The first half of 2023 has been very busy. We did not wait for Le Bourget to make announcements”, pleads Jean-Paul Alary, president of Safran Aircraft Engines (SAE), the queen division of the engine manufacturer. He prefers to recall that CFM, a joint venture between Safran and the American General Electric (GE), won the contract to supply engines for the 400 medium-haul aircraft ordered in February by Air India from Airbus and Boeing. . In total, 800 additional engines came to fill an already well-stocked order book.
In fact, the relative discretion of the flagships of aeronautics seems quite diplomatic. Going out with drums and trumpets to celebrate every plane or engine order, as before, would be like waving a red rag under the noses of conservationists. “We learned to communicate a little differently. As the year progresses. Not just in the living room »admet M. Alary.
Safran leads the medium-haul market
Nevertheless, since the marketing of the A320neo, if Airbus and Boeing compete in the number of orders, the big winner is still called Safran, which largely dominates the medium-haul market. It has the exclusivity of the Boeing 737 MAX engines and has won more than 60% market share of the A320neo. “In the first half of this year as in 2022, we have largely achieved our objectives. Today, the LEAP engine backlog exceeds 10,000 units. To which are added 5,500 already delivered,” welcomes Mr. Alary.
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For Safran, as for its largest customers, Airbus and Boeing, the major challenge at the moment is to be able to increase production rates to serve airline customers as quickly as possible, without breaking one or more links in the fragile chain of subcontractors. contractors. According to Mr. Alary, “SAE is expected to deliver 1,700 engines this year and 2,000 in 2024, a figure originally expected in 2020 ». Now that the crisis is over, Safran “manages to pick up the pace”, he continues. And this, despite “Recruitment difficulties. Our hiring program has accelerated due to the end of the crisis, our industrial challenges, the maintenance needs of the entire fleet and the preparation for the future”.
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