Dubai, In a ceremony at the Dubai Airshow today, CFM International recognized flydubai as one of the recipients of the 20,000th CFM56 engine. The aircraft with the 20,000th engine was delivered to the airline in October of this year.In 2008, flydubai placed an order for 50 CFM56-7B-powered Boeing Next-Generation 737 aircraft and will have six aircraft by year-end.

"It is especially fitting that we recognize flydubai today - a new low-cost carrier which has rapidly become very successful in one of the fastest-growing regions in the world.CFM built its reputation on providing a highly reliable, cost-effective product for that segment of the industry," said David Joyce, president and CEO of CFM parent company, GE Aviation."We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to all of our customers for the success that CFM has achieved in the last 35 years.As we look to the future, we remain firmly committed to doing everything in our power to assure them that they made the right choice."

Ghaith Al Ghaith, CEO of flydubai, said: "Safety, reliability and low operating costs are top priorities for us as a low cost carrier and we get all of that with this engine. When you combine these factors with the benefits to the environment of the CFM56-7B engine, it was a natural choice for flydubai. We are delighted to be the 20,000th customer of this great product."

CFM actually delivered two "20,000th" engines; the CFM56-5B variant was delivered to Air France in October, powering an Airbus A321.

Source: Press Release (CFM International)