Rolls-Royce has won a US$700 million order from China Southern Airlines for Trent 700 engines to power ten Airbus A330 aircraft. The order includes TotalCare® long-term engine service support.

The order was signed today at Zhuhai Airshow by Li Ming, Vice President of Maintenance and Engineering Department, China Southern, and Paul Hallam, Rolls-Royce, Vice President, Greater China – Civil Aerospace. The signing was witnessed by Li Tongbin, Executive Vice President, China Southern, and Paul Freestone, Rolls-Royce, Senior Vice President, Customers – Civil Aerospace.

The agreement confirms the Trent 700 as the overwhelming engine of customer choice in Greater China, with a market share of close to 90%.

Li Tongbin said: “We have been impressed with Rolls-Royce engine performance in service and look forward to further developing our relationship with this latest order. Rolls-Royce has an important role to play in supporting our fleet growth.”

Paul Freestone said: “We are proud to support China’s continued airline growth, creating new connections that link China ever more closely. We are particularly grateful to China Southern, a valued customer that was the first airline in mainland China to operate the A330, for its continued support for our engines.”

The airline currently operates 14 A330s that are powered by the Trent 700, five A380s powered by the Trent 900 and nine Boeing 757s powered by the RB211.

The Trent 700 delivers the best fuel burn, emissions and noise performance, resulting in market leadership on the aircraft. The engine has won more than 70 per cent of new orders globally over the last four years and accounts for a similar percentage on future A330 deliveries. More than 1,600 Trent 700s are now in service or on firm order.