CFM International
In 1974 GE entered into an agreement with Snecma of France, forming CFM International to jointly produce a new mid-sized turbofan, which emerged as the CFM56. A 50/50 joint partnership was formed with a new plant in Evendale, OH to produce the design. At first, sales were very difficult to come by, and the project was due to be canceled. Only two weeks before this was to happen, in March 1979, several companies selected the CFM56 to re-engine their existing Douglas DC-8 fleets. By July 2010, CFM International had delivered their 21,000th engine of the CFM56 family, with an ongoing production rate of 1250 per year, against a four-year production backlog.