Fifty Thousand Commercial, Thirty Thousand MilitaryWide moat

GE Aerospace (GE) — moat facet

Share has to be re-won; an installed base does not. Winning next year's orders decides the aftermarket of the 2040s.

GE Aerospace's business description gives the number once and moves on, which understates it. The installed base is approximately 50,000 commercial and 30,000 military engines, and it supports an aftermarket representing approximately seventy per cent of revenue1.

What supports 80,000 enginesCustomersapproximately 120 countriesUS facilities70 in 23 states, 24 of them ownedNon-US facilities62 in 23 countries, 30 of them ownedEmployeesabout 57,000, some 30,000 in the United StatesCommercial deliveries2,386 in 2025, 1,911 in 2024, 2,075 in 2023Retirements from the base are not disclosed, which is the gap in this picture.
Share has to be re-won every year. An installed base does not.

Eighty thousand engines is a physical fact about the world's aviation fleet, not a market share. Each one was certified to an airframe, each has a maintenance programme approved by a regulator, and each consumes parts that were approved for it specifically. The company serves customers in approximately 120 countries from 70 facilities in 23 American states and 62 facilities in 23 other countries2, because the fleet is everywhere.

The economics of an installed base differ from the economics of market share in one decisive way: share has to be re-won and a base does not. GE Aerospace's commercial position on a given aircraft was decided when that aircraft was ordered, sometimes twenty years ago, and cannot be revisited until the aircraft is retired. Winning next year's orders determines the aftermarket of the 2040s. It has no effect on the aftermarket of the 2030s, which is already settled.

That is why the 2025 order wins matter less to the next three years than they look. Qatar Airways, Emirates, International Airlines Group, ANA Holdings, Malaysia Aviation Group, Korean Air, Cathay Pacific and Pegasus all made commitments across the GE9X, GEnx and LEAP programmes3 — and every one of those engines will earn its first overhaul revenue late this decade at the earliest.

The military half behaves differently again: F110, F404, F414, T408, T700, T901 and LM2500 platforms4 fly for decades, are serviced under government contracts, and earn a much lower margin.

Follow the direction of the base. Commercial engine deliveries of 2,386 in 2025 against 1,911 in 2024 and 2,075 in 20235 are additions. The retirements are not disclosed, which is the disclosure gap to press on.

Moat trajectory: Widening

Additions are running well ahead of the historical rate — 2,386 commercial engines in 2025 against 1,911 and 2,075 in the two prior years — on a base of approximately 50,000 commercial engines. Retirements are not disclosed, which is the honest limit on this judgement.

The number that tests this moat
Reported
Commercial engine deliveries
2,386 in 2025, against 1,911 and 2,075

Additions to a base of about 50,000 commercial engines, running well ahead of the prior two years on improved material supply. Retirements are not disclosed, which is the disclosure gap: the mature engines are the profitable ones and the transition from CFM56 to LEAP moves the aftermarket from peak to beginning.

Source: GE Aerospace Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 ↗
⚠ Threats to the moat
⚠ THREAT 01
The Fleet Ages Out, and Nobody Publishes the Retirements
GE Aerospace publishes what it delivers and never what leaves service, and the mature engines are the profitable ones.
References
  1. ReportedThe installed base is approximately 50,000 commercial and 30,000 military engines, and it supports an aftermarket representing approximately seventy per cent of revenue.
    GE Aerospace Form 10-K, FY2025 - Item 1 general and Item 2 Properties — the installed base of approximately 50,000 commercial and 30,000 military engines and the statement that it supports an aftermarket representing approximately 70% of revenue, the FLIGHT DECK operating model, customers in approximately 120 countries, the facility count, human capital and employee numbers, the intellectual property discussion, the research and development table splitting company-funded from customer- and partner-funded spending, and the engine testing milestones. — FY2025 · publ. January 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedThe company serves customers in approximately 120 countries from 70 facilities in 23 American states and 62 facilities in 23 other countries, because the fleet is everywhere.
    GE Aerospace Form 10-K, FY2025 - Item 1 general and Item 2 Properties — the installed base of approximately 50,000 commercial and 30,000 military engines and the statement that it supports an aftermarket representing approximately 70% of revenue, the FLIGHT DECK operating model, customers in approximately 120 countries, the facility count, human capital and employee numbers, the intellectual property discussion, the research and development table splitting company-funded from customer- and partner-funded spending, and the engine testing milestones. — FY2025 · publ. January 2026 · source ↗
  3. ReportedQatar Airways, Emirates, International Airlines Group, ANA Holdings, Malaysia Aviation Group, Korean Air, Cathay Pacific and Pegasus all made commitments across the GE9X, GEnx and LEAP programmes — and every one of those engines will earn its first overhaul revenue late this decade at the earliest.
    GE Aerospace Form 10-K, FY2025 - Segment Operations — Commercial Engines & Services: segment revenue, profit and margin, commercial engine and LEAP unit deliveries, internal shop visit revenue growth, the CES remaining performance obligation, the 2025 engine commitments from Qatar Airways, Emirates, International Airlines Group, ANA Holdings, Malaysia Aviation Group, Korean Air, Cathay Pacific and Pegasus, and commercial departures growth. — FY2025 · publ. January 2026 · source ↗
  4. ReportedThe military half behaves differently again: F110, F404, F414, T408, T700, T901 and LM2500 platforms fly for decades, are serviced under government contracts, and earn a much lower margin.
    GE Aerospace Form 10-K, FY2025 - Item 1 Business — segment descriptions for Commercial Engines & Services and Defense & Propulsion Technologies, the CFM International 50-50 non-consolidated joint venture with Safran Aircraft Engines, the commercial engine platforms (LEAP, CFM56, GEnx, GE9X, CF6, GE90), the defence platforms (F110, F404, F414, T408, T700, T901, LM2500), the Propulsion & Additive Technologies brands, the CFM RISE programme, the customer description including airframers and sole-source positions, and the segment revenue and services shares. — FY2025 · publ. January 2026 · source ↗
  5. ReportedCommercial engine deliveries of 2,386 in 2025 against 1,911 in 2024 and 2,075 in 2023 are additions.
    GE Aerospace Form 10-K, FY2025 - Segment Operations — Commercial Engines & Services: segment revenue, profit and margin, commercial engine and LEAP unit deliveries, internal shop visit revenue growth, the CES remaining performance obligation, the 2025 engine commitments from Qatar Airways, Emirates, International Airlines Group, ANA Holdings, Malaysia Aviation Group, Korean Air, Cathay Pacific and Pegasus, and commercial departures growth. — FY2025 · publ. January 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 23, 2026