GE Aerospace demos hybrid‑electric narrowbody engine

GE Aerospace has marked a significant advance in hybrid-electric propulsion with the successful ground demonstration of power transfer, extraction and injection in a high-bypass commercial turbofan engine. The milestone was achieved during 2025 in tests on a modified Passport engine at the company's Peebles Test Operation, conducted as part of NASA's Turbofan Engine Power Extraction Demonstration project. The work focused on proving system-level integration and controls, moving beyond component-level validation and deepening technical understanding of how hybrid electric architectures behave in real engine environments.

The company is developing a narrowbody hybrid electric configuration that incorporates electric motor-generator units directly into the gas turbine to provide supplemental power across different phases of flight.

The approach aims to enhance performance while giving operators the flexibility to run the system with or without energy storage such as batteries. According to GE Aerospace, this creates a practical route to efficiency gains without the limitations of full-battery dependency. Arjan Hegeman, vice president of future of flight at GE Aerospace, said: "Hybrid electric propulsion is central to how GE Aerospace is redefining the future of flight.

Our latest milestone successfully demonstrated a narrowbody hybrid electric engine architecture that doesn't require energy storage to operate. It's a critical step to making hybrid electric flight a reality for commercial aviation with technologies that meet customer needs for greater efficiency, durability, and range." The project exceeded NASA's technical performance targets, which were set using industry guidance on the levels of engine capability required to deliver meaningful fuel-cost savings for U.S. aviation while also meeting the power demands of future aircraft platforms.

Advanced concepts
The work feeds into wider activity under the CFM International RISE (Revolutionary Innovation for Sustainable Engines) programme, one of the industry's largest and most comprehensive technology demonstrators.

Since its launch in 2021, more than 350 tests and over 3,000 endurance cycles have been completed across advanced concepts including the Open Fan, next-generation compact cores and hybrid electric systems.

The programme is centred on achieving step-change efficiency improvements, with a target of more than 20% better fuel burn than today's commercial engines, while maintaining safety and durability as core priorities. Ground and flight test campaigns are planned for later this decade as integration work accelerates with airframe partners. GE Aerospace's progress in hybrid electric technologies builds on years of development, including a 2016 ground test of an electric motor-driven propeller and the 2022 completion of the world's first megawatt-class, multi-kilovolt hybrid-electric propulsion system test at simulated altitudes up to 45,000ft.

Further expansion of its capabilities is planned through a new 2025 strategic partnership and equity investment with BETA Technologies, aimed at delivering a hybrid electric turbogenerator for Advanced Air Mobility applications.

RISE is a technology demonstration programme of CFM International, a 50-50 joint company between GE Aerospace and Safran Aircraft Engines.

It is not a product offered for commercial sale.

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References

1. ^ GE Aerospace (www.geaerospace.com)
2. ^ CFM International (www.cfmaeroengines.com)