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GECAS history
GECAS company history timeline
In 1968, GE launched the LM2500, a nominal 20,000-shaft-horsepower gas turbine based on the TF39 engine.
In 1971, Safran Aircraft Engines (formerly Snecma) of France selected GE as a partner to develop a new turbofan engine in the 20,000 pound thrust class.
In 1972, when Aer Lingus found itself with an excess Boeing 747 jumbo jet, in after the 'Troubles' in Northern Ireland, Ryan persuaded Air Siam to lease it complete with Aer Lingus staff--a deal that produced winners on all sides.
1975: Guinness Peat Aviation (GPA) brokering venture is formed by Aer Lingus, Guinness Mahon, and Tony Ryan.
Ryan's righthand man Maurice Foley joined GPA in 1976 as a nonexecutive director on behalf of Aer Lingus.
1977: GPA starts buying its own new aircraft.
CFM proved that patience is a virtue as the joint company did not receive its first order until 1979, when the CFM56-2 turbofan was selected to re-engine the DC-8 Series 60 aircraft, renamed the DC-8 Super 70s.
In a landmark 1981 decision, Boeing selected the CFM56-3 turbofan to power the popular Boeing 737-300/400/500 “Classic” series aircraft.
Pretax profits were $71 million in 1987.
GPA ended 1988 with an implied market value of more than $1.5 billion.
In January 1989, GPA had a US$3 billion dollar fleet of 164 aircraft leased to 62 airlines in 29 countries, according to a Salomon Brothers analyst.
GPA had 170 employees and pretax profits of $150 million in 1989.
Lease revenues for the 1990--91 fiscal year rose 66 percent to US$8.3 billion.
Launched in 1990, the GE90 engine is GE Aviation’s first engine in the 100,000 pound thrust class and became the most technologically advanced commercial turbofan engine in 25 years.
GPA announced plans for a stock flotation in the spring of 1991, but it was delayed for a year.
Foley, then president, became CEO in March 1992, and Ryan remained chairman.
After a year of haggling with advisers over the share price, the company launched its US$1.1 billion (IR £603 million) share sale in June 1992 in London, New York, and Tokyo.
GECAS owned or managed more than 900 planes at the beginning of 1995.
In 1995, the company made history when the first engine equipped with a double annular combustor (DAC), the CFM56-5B, entered commercial service with Swissair.
Virginia joined GE in 1995 as a financial accountant, followed by management roles in accounting and risk management.
Meanwhile, GPA finally secured a $4 billion bond issue in March 1996 after negotiating with 138 banks.
GECAS earned an estimated $200 million in profits in 1996, compared with $368 million posted by ILFC, its smaller competitor.
Texas Pacific agreed to pay $115 million for a 47.7 percent stake in the company, for which GPA had logged a $63 million profit in 1997--98, up 15 percent for the year.
GPA found another investor, Texas Pacific, in October 1998 after GE Capital dropped its option to buy its remaining shares.
The TECH56 technology program, launched in 1998, advanced propulsion for upgrades to existing engines and served as baseline technology for the next-generation CFM turbofan, ultimately called the LEAP.
In May 1999, GECAS sold the equity interest in 36 aircraft worth $1.3 billion to Miami-based UniCapital Corporation.
Only three or four firms were involved in aircraft leasing when GPA started; there were 30 competitors by 1999, including divisions of multinational corporations and aircraft manufacturers themselves.
Jonty first joined GE in 1999 to lead GE Capital’s corporate aircraft leasing and financing efforts in Australia, New Zealand and South East Asia.
Even that order was dwarfed by one in July 2000 for 74 Boeing 737 and 777 airliners worth US$5.5 billion.
Mayank first joined GE in 2002 at GE Capital International Services (now Genpact) and was their Assistant Vice President HR based at Gurgaon, India.
He came to GECAS in 2005 and over his ten-year career with the company, held various commercial and leadership roles including MAC Regional Manager, Milestone Commercial Integration Leader, and SVP – Commercial, Emerging Markets for Milestone.
The GE Honda HF120 engine was launched in 2006 and selected to power Honda Aircraft Company's advanced light HondaJet.
In 2007, GE acquired Smiths Aerospace, a U.K.-based supplier of integrated systems for aircraft manufacturers and engine components.
November 2008 marked the beginning of the flight test program for the GE-powered ARJ21 aircraft and thus the maiden flight of China’s first domestically developed regional jet aircraft.
In 2008, CFM International launched the LEAP engine to power new narrow-body aircraft on the horizon.
Seven years later, in 2008, the GP7200 entered revenue service powering the Emirates' A380-800 aircraft.
In early 2008, GE Aviation created a new organization dedicated to the business and general aviation market.
John started his GE career in GECAS in 2008 as VP Transaction Advisory.
In 2009, GE Aviation Systems reached a milestone by supplying the Boeing 787 Dreamliner with aircraft systems from takeoff to touchdown, including the common core system and landing gear system, on the aircraft’s maiden flight test.
She was promoted in 2009 GECAS Executive Vice President.
The first flight of both the 787 and 747-8 aircraft occurred in 2010.
In 2010, the H80 engine successfully completed its first flight on the Thrush 510G aircraft.
In 2010, Bombardier selected GE Aviation to provide the integrated powerplant system for the new Global 7000 and Global 8000 business jets, launching the development of a new business jet engine for GE, called the Passport engine.
Due to US Government fiscal challenges and DoD budget cuts, Congress made the decision in 2011 to discontinue funding development of the F136 and the program was cancelled after about 80% completion.
By 2011, the LEAP engine was successfully launched on the Airbus A320 neo, the Boeing 737 MAX, and the COMAC C919.
In 2011, she became the SVP & Manager Insurance leading the Insurance Function for GECAS. Over the past number of years, her role has expanded to include responsibility for the Deliveries Function and GECAS Global Compliance.
GE’s aggressive move into digital products was sparked largely by the 2012 acquisition of the small Austin Digital in Austin, Texas, which revealed to GE new ways to use flight data analysis to optimize customer flight operations.
Then in 2013, building upon the GE90-115B success, GE launched the GE9X engine as the sole engine for the new Boeing 777X aircraft.
Building on the strength of its design capabilities for high performance combat aircraft engines, GE successfully completed testing the world’s first adaptive, three-stream engine in 2014 through the Adaptive Versatile Engine Technology (ADVENT) program with the United States Air Force Research Lab.
By 2014, GE and its partner companies faced a backlog of more than 15,000 commercial engines.
Asheville CMC manufacturing: In 2014, GE opened the Asheville, North Carolina, plant to mass-produce CMC components for commercial and military engines.
The H80 turboprop became a critical first-step for GE. In 2015, GE unveiled the Catalyst turboprop engine for a new Textron Cessna airplane.
Also in 2016, GE Aviation consolidated its growing digital services under a single business called GE Aviation, Digital Solutions.
Lafayette engine assembly: Opened in 2016, the new engine assembly in Lafayette, Indiana, produces LEAP engines.
He also held the position of Managing Director Global Programs for GE Capital Equipment Finance in Dallas, before returning to GECAS at the start of 2016.
In 2017, GE celebrated 25 years powering regional jets with more than 6,500 CF34 engines delivered.
In 2019, GE announced that the GE9X became the most powerful commercial jet engine after reaching 134,300 pounds of thrust during ground testing at Peebles, Ohio.
The complex now operates 11 engine test sites, including two large indoor sites.Huntsville CMC materials: In 2019, GE opened a unique production complex in Huntsville, Alabama, to produce highly proprietary materials used to create CMC components.
UL student wins GECAS AEROVATE 2019 Aviation Innovation Competition
By 2020, more than 2,500 GEnx engines have been sold as the fastest-selling, high-thrust GE engine in history.
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GECAS competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BridgeNet Solutions | 2001 | $7.5M | 73 | - |
| Universal Weather and Aviation | 1959 | $252.2M | 700 | 36 |
| Sentient Jet | 1999 | $120,000 | 1 | 3 |
| Contract Services Limited | 1974 | $580,000 | 10 | 51 |
| Global Signal | 1995 | $674.8M | 350 | - |
| NetJets | 1964 | $2.7B | 7,000 | 59 |
| The International Air Cargo Association | 1960 | $2.0M | 18 | - |
| Ricondo & Associates, Inc. | - | $4.2M | 35 | 5 |
| Bristow Group | 1955 | $1.4B | 693 | 6 |
| Cambridge Systematics | 1972 | $920,000 | 225 | - |
GECAS history FAQs
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GECAS may also be known as or be related to GE Capital Aviation Services, Inc., GE Commercial Finance, GECAS and Gecas.