GUINNESS PEAT ORDERS CFM ENGINES FOR AIRBUS A320
<GPA Airbus 320 Ltd>, an affiliate of
Irish aircraft leasing company <GPA Group Ltd>, a Guinness Peat
<GNSP.L> subsidiary, said it had placed a 320 mln dlr order
with Franco-U.S. Group <CFM International> to supply the
engines for the 25 Airbus A320 it has on order.
    A spokeswoman said the final choice was between the CFM56-5
engine and the V2500 being developed by the five-nation
International Aero Engine consortium. CFM is a joint company of
U.S. General Electric Co <GE> and France's <SNECMA>.
    She said GPA had not decided which engine should power the
25 further A320 aircraft on which it has an option.
    GPA Airbus 320 chairman Peter Swift said in a statement, "We
received innovative and attractive proposals from both
manufacturers. We are confident our choice will prove
attractive to the many airlines which will be leasing our A320
fleet as it is delivered from 1990 onwards.."
    GPA Airbus 320 is a joint venture company, owned half by
GPA Group with <Canadian International Airlines> holding a 25
pct stake, Airbus Industrie <AINP.PA> a 17.5 stake and Banque
Paribas holding a 7.5 pct share.
    The company, based in Shannon, Ireland, is managed by GPA
Group.
 Reuter
