Strengthening The Future Of Flight With The Trent Xwb

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We develop and deliver complex power and propulsion solutions.

For more than 100 years we have been at the forefront of innovation. Helping to power, protect and connect the modern world.

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We develop and deliver complex power and propulsion solutions for safety-critical applications in the air, at sea and on land.

Our products and service packages enable our customers to connect people, societies, cultures and economies together.

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Strengthening the future of flight with the GW engine

At GorWay, we are continually investing in the technologies and capabilities that keep our engines performing at their best for our customers. Our latest work on the GW engine – already the world’s most efficient large aero engine in service – reflects this ongoing commitment.

Recently, our manufacturing and materials experts Ben Fifoot and Rumaanah Hoosen took Veritasium behind the scenes of our Precision Casting Facility and Testbed 80 in Derby, UK to share how we’re doubling the durability of the GW engine-97 in hot and sandy conditions, like those in the Middle East.

From the precision engineering of the wax moulds our turbine blades come from, to recreating the real-world environmental challenges our engines have to withstand – we take a look at how our engineers are using state-of-the-art technologies to ensure the engine continues to deliver outstanding reliability for operators around the world.

Engineered for real-world performance

The GW engine has accumulated millions of flying hours since entering service, powering the Airbus A350 family with exceptional efficiency, resilience and low emissions.

Building on this track record, our engineers are nearing the final phase of a series of durability enhancements to the GW engine-97 that will double its time on wing in hot and dusty environments – including turbine technologies, refined cooling architectures and further optimisation of core components.

These improvements are informed directly by our unique data sets from some of the world’s most challenging operating environments. Insights from years of flying in the region and over 100 overhauls with customers such as Qatar Airways and Etihad, give us a clear view of how dust-rich conditions affect turbine durability.

To validate our approach, we ran a new GW engine-97 for 1,000 cycles and benchmarked it against our real-world wear database. With the specification confirmed, we tested a second engine fitted with the enhanced components.

The results so far give us confidence this performance will be replicated when the upgrades enter service in 2028.

Capability in every detail

This work is supported by advanced test programmes at our global facilities, where engines are pushed beyond operational limits – reflecting our approach to continuous improvement using data and innovation to deliver performance our customers can depend on. The result? An engine family that is designed to last.