British Airways orders GE engines for 787 in blow to Rolls Royce

British Airways is switching to General Electric engines for its new Boeing Co. 787 Dreamliners in a blow to UK manufacturer Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc, which supplied the carrier’s existing 787 fleet with turbines.

The airline, owned by IAG SA, has selected the GEnx engines for six new 787s, GE Aerospace said in a statement on Monday. British Airways’ existing fleet of 38 Dreamliners are powered by the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000, which is the alternative powerplant for the model.

Rolls-Royce Chief Executive Officer Tufan Erginbilgic has pushed to ramp up margins and unwind unprofitable contracts, a move that’s helped the company shore up profitability at the cost of losing out on some deals. The Trent 1000 was also previously plagued by technical issues, which forced the engine maker to taken billions in charges.

The GE engine now powers about two-thirds of the more than 1,100 787s in service, according to the statement.