GE Aviation hails $5B+ in Qatar agreements

Major regional employer GE Aviation is announcing multiple agreements with Qatar Airways valued at a total of more than $5 billion.

Qatar Airways selected the GEnx engine to power 30 Boeing 787-9 aircraft, coupled with a maintenance agreement. Qatar Airways also signed a maintenance agreement on its GE9X engine fleet that will power 60 Boeing 777X aircraft.

A signing ceremony between Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker and GE Vice Chairman and GE Aviation President and Chief Executive David Joyce was held at the White House Tuesday and witnessed by President Trump and Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, Amir of the state of Qatar, GE Aviation said in a release.

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Said Al Baker: “Qatar Airways has ambitious plans for the future, and we are delighted to have GE beside us as we embark on this journey together.”

“Qatar Airways is one of the fastest growing airlines in the world, and GE Aviation is proud to collaborate with Qatar Airways and play a significant role in their growth,” Joyce said.

The engine selection and services orders will draw heavily on GE Aviation’s U.S. manufacturing footprint and more than 1,000 U.S. based suppliers. GE Aviation employs about 27,000 employees in the U.S. at more than 50 locations in close to 20 states.

Among GE Aviation’s Dayton-area suppliers is Unison, which has about 800 employees at its Beavercreek facility at 2455 Dayton-Xenia Road. The EPISCenter on the University of Dayton campus is also busy.

The company has a 15,000-or-more engine backlog. Altogether, GE Aviation is a huge employer in Ohio and the Dayton area. Considered Ohio’s largest manufacturing employer, GE Aviation makes commercial and military jet engines and parts and has more than 9,000 employees in Southwest Ohio, including its plant in Evendale.

“I want to congratulate GE Aviation and their employees in Evendale for winning a contract to provide Qatar Airlines with their top of the line GEnx engines,” Senator Rob Portman said in his own statement.

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