LEAP-1C

Descripción general

The LEAP-1C es la única planta motriz desarrollada en Occidente para el primer avión de fuselaje estrecho de diseño nacional de China, the COMAC C919. Comparte el mismo 78-inch fan diameter and 11:1 bypass ratio as the LEAP-1A for the A320neo, lo que lo convierte en la variante LEAP físicamente más grande de las tres. The LEAP-1C representa un programa estratégicamente significativo for both CFM International and China's aviation industry — es la única variante LEAP desarrollada exclusivamente para una aeronave de un solo cliente, and esa aeronave representa el esfuerzo más ambicioso de China para entrar en el mercado comercial de fuselaje estrecho dominado por Boeing y Airbus.

From a technical standpoint, the LEAP-1C es esencialmente una variante remotorizada of the LEAP-1A adaptada a los requisitos de integración del fuselaje del C919, incluyendo geometría de góndola revisada y diferentes calibraciones de software FADEC. It incorporates the same CMC turbine shrouds, 3D-woven composite fan blades, TAPS II combustor, and additive-manufactured fuel nozzles that define the LEAP generation. However, the C919's la entrada en servicio comercial se retrasó significativamente — originalmente prevista para 2014, finalmente entró en servicio with China Eastern Airlines in May 2023, casi una década tarde.

Especificaciones técnicas

Variantes

The LEAP-1C is produced in a single primary variant, the LEAP-1C1, rated at approximately 30,000 lbf for the C919's operating weight and range requirements. Unlike the LEAP-1A which spans 24,000–35,000 lbf across multiple sub-variants for different A320neo family members, the LEAP-1C is tailored specifically to the C919's mission profile targeting routes up to approximately 2,200 nm. Potential future stretched C929 variants — should they proceed — would likely require a larger engine outside the LEAP family's current envelope.

Aplicaciones en aeronaves

• COMAC C919: LEAP-1C1 (30,000 lbf) — el primer fuselaje estrecho monopasillo autóctono de China, routes up to 2,200 nm

Historia del desarrollo

COMAC selected the LEAP-1C in 2009 as the launch engine for the C919, in competition with Pratt & Whitney's PW1100G. The LEAP-1C first ran in October 2014, sharing many development milestones with the LEAP-1A program. Chinese certification (CAAC type certificate) for the LEAP-1C came in September 2022, paving the way for C919 certification in September 2022. China Eastern Airlines inaugurated the first C919 commercial flight in May 2023 on the Shanghai Hongqiao – Beijing Capital route. The LEAP-1C's strategic significance has grown amid US-China trade tensions and export control concerns: China has actively accelerated development of the domestic AECC CJ-1000A engine as a potential long-term replacement, though that engine faces a decade-long certification road. For the foreseeable future, the LEAP-1C remains the C919's only engine option, making CFM International a critical supplier to China's aviation ambitions.