10 Most Powerful Aircraft Engines in the World

There are many types of aircraft engines such as turbojet, turbofan, turboprop and piston engines. Numerous manufacturers build aircraft engines but the leading manufacturers are GE, Rolls Royce Holdings and Pratt & Whitney. This invention is considered as one of those inventions which completely changed our world. If we choose seven wonders in the world according to the 21st century then one of these aircraft will definitely get placed in the list. To put together our list of 10 most powerful aircraft engines in the world, we followed few parameters such as power generated, thrust to engine ratio and total capacity.

10. Progress D-18T

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The Progress D-18T is a high bypass turbofan aircraft engine, designed in 1982. It was manufactured by the Ivchenko-Progress and developed for Antonov An 124 and Antonov An 225. It has 230 KN of thrust and designed to power very large transport aircraft. It is 5.4 meters in length with fan diameter of 2.33 meters and the weight is 4100 kg. Since 1982, 188 units have been manufactured.

9. General Electric CF-6

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The General Electric CF-6 is a series of high bypass turbofan engine developed by General Electric aviation. It is used in many aircraft including Airbus (A300, A310, A330), Boeing (747, 767) and McDonnell Douglas airliners. It is equipped with two high pressure and four low pressure turbines. It has the maximum thrust value of 274 KN. The engine is 4.65 meters in length and weighs more than 4100 kg.

8. Rolls Royce Trent 700

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The Rolls Royce Trent 700 is one of the most powerful turbofan engines used for the Airbus A330. At the time of late 1980s, when the new A330’s weight increased, the Rolls Royce planned to design the Trent 700. It first entered in service in March 1995 and has a maximum thrust rating up to 316 KN. The dry weight of the engine is 4785 kg and 3.91 meters in length. It has four variants and all of them are used for different airlines.

7. General Electric GEnx

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The General Electric GEnx (Next Generation) is a high bypass turbofan jet engine, derived from the General Electric GE90 engine. It uses some features from GE90 and also carries composite technologies into the fan. It was first used in 2006 and some of its major applications are Boeing 747-8 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner. It has the maximum power of up to 330 KN. Its fan is 111 inches in diameter and more than 5800 kg in weight. It also features fuel burn reduction technologies which also help to reduce noise.

6. Rolls Royce Trent 1000

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The Rolls Royce Trent 1000 is a turbofan engine, developed by Rolls Royce in 2006. It is used as an auxiliary engine of the GEnx in Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The technology used in the Rolls Royce Trent 1000 series engines derived from the Trent 8104 engines. Its fan is 112 inches in diameter and the dry weight of the engine is over 5700 kg. It has the maximum thrust value of 330 KN and can flow 1290 kg of air every second.

5. Engine Alliance GP7000

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The Engine Alliance GP7000 is a turbofan jet engine which is currently used in the world’s largest passenger airliner, Airbus A380. It was first used in April 2004 and built with the collaboration of General Electric and Pratt & Whitney. It also uses the same technology as in GE 90 with Pratt & Whitney fan and low pressure system design. The engine can produce maximum thrust of 363 KN. Its dry weight is over 6700 kg and length is 187 inches with fan diameter of 116 inches.

4. Rolls Royce Trent 900

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The Rolls Royce Trent 900 is a series of turbofan engines and one of the family members of Trent engines. It was first used in 2004 and has four variants which are used in different airliners. It is equipped with 116 inch wide low pressure compressor fan and the total weight is over 6200 kg. It has one of the most powerful engines with the maximum thrust value of 374 KN. It is the first engine in his family which fitted with the advanced engine health monitoring system.

3. Rolls Royce Trent XWB

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The Rolls Royce Trent XWB is a family of turbofan jet engines which is used for the Airbus A350 XWB. It was first successfully tested in 2010 and developed as a competitor to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. It has five variants and the largest fan diameter is 118 inches. The advanced version has the maximum thrust of 430 KN. Rolls Royce uses these engines in the Qatar Airways and Airbus A350-1000.

2. Pratt & Whitney PW4000

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The Pratt & Whitney PW4000 is a high bypass turbofan aircraft engine. The engine was manufactured by Pratt & Whitney and first tested in 1984. It is used in many airliners including Airbus (A300, A310, A330), Boeing (747-400, 767, 777, KC-46) and McDonnell Douglas MD-11. This engine family is divided into three engines according to their fan diameter and the largest fan is 112 inches in diameter. It has a powerful thrust ranging from 230 to 441 KN and feature digital engine control.

1. General Electric GE90

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One of the most popular electrical companies, General Electric built the world’s largest turbofan engine which entered in service in 1995. This engine is economical and made from a composite ceramic so that it can work in much higher temperature. It is used in one of the biggest aircraft, Boeing 777 and has a world record thrust rating between 330 to 510 KN. It powered three 777 models – 777-200LR, 777-300ER and 777-200F. The largest version of the fan is 123 inches in diameter and weighs more than 8000 kg. GE90 also powered the world’s longest commercial flight of over 22 hours from Hong Kong to London.

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