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[ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Electric_GE90"]General Electric GE90 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]
" In October 2003, a Boeing 777-300ER broke the ETOPS record by being able to fly five and a half hours (330 minutes) with one engine shut down.[1] The aircraft, with GE90-115B engines, flew from Seattle to Taiwan as part of the ETOPS certification programme.
The GE90 series are physically the largest engines in aviation history, the fan diameter of the original series being 312 cm (123 in). The largest variant, the GE90-115B, has a fan diameter of 325 cm (128 in). As a result, GE90 engines can only be airfreighted in assembled form by outsize cargo aircraft such as the Antonov An-124 Condor, presenting unique problems if, due to emergency diversions, a 777 were stranded in a place without the proper spare parts. If the fan is removed from the core, then the engines may be shipped on a 747 Freighter.[2]]Apart from its size, the GE90-115B is powerful enough to fully operate GE's Boeing 747 testbed on its own power[3][4] as was demonstrated during a maximum thrust, low speed flight test on board the aircraft"
"According to the Guinness Book of Records, at 127,900 pounds-force (569 kN)f, the engine holds the record for the highest thrust (although rated at 115,300 pounds-force (513 kN)f). This thrust record was accomplished inadvertently as part of a one-hour, triple-red-line engine stress test. In order to accommodate the increase in torsional stresses an entirely new steel alloy (GE1014) had to be created and then machined to extreme tolerances.[14] The new record was set during testing of a GE90-115B development engine at GE Aviations' Peebles Test Operation, which is an outdoor test complex outside Peebles, Ohio. It eclipsed the engine's previous Guinness world record of 122,965 pounds-force (546.98 kN).[15]
On November 10, 2005, the GE90 entered the Guinness World Records for a second time. The GE90-110B1 powered a 777-200LR during the world's longest flight by a commercial airliner, though there were no fare-paying passengers on the flight, only journalists and invited guests. The 777-200LR flew 13,422 miles (21,601 km) in 22 hours, 42 minutes, flying from Hong Kong to London "the long way": over the Pacific, over the continental U.S., then over the Atlantic to London.[16]
Airworthiness Directive
The FAA issued an Airworthiness Directive on May 16, 2013 and sent it to owners and operators of General Electric Company (GE) GE90-110B1 and GE90-115B turbofan engines. This emergency AD was prompted by reports of two failures of transfer gearbox assemblies (TGBs) which resulted in in-flight shutdowns (IFSDs). Investigation has revealed that the failures were caused by TGB radial gear cracking and separation. Further inspections found two additional radial gears with cracks. This condition, if not corrected, could result in additional IFSDs of one or more engines, loss of thrust control, and damage to the airplane. The Airworthiness Directive requires compliance by taking remedial measures within 5 days of receipt of the AD.[17]"
