Gregory Polek has spent his entire career in aviation journalism with AIN, starting as a proofreader and assistant to then-managing editor Mary Mahoney in 1995 after serving an internship with&nbsp;New Jersey Monthly&nbsp;magazine and completing his B.A. degree in English/Writing at New Jersey’s William Paterson College. By 1997 Polek accepted a position as an associate editor, covering the regional airline beat for&nbsp;Aviation International News&nbsp;in place of retiring industry veteran Don Anderson. The assignment took Polek across North America and Europe to profile regional airlines varying in size and mission from the likes of floatplane operators Kenmore Air and Chalk’s Ocean Airways to regional jet operators such as SkyWest and American Eagle. Today, in his dual role as Air Transport Editor and International Airshow Editor, Polek writes, edits, and manages AIN’s commercial aviation content while overseeing each of the company’s daily international air show publications in Paris, Farnborough, Singapore, and Dubai. Most recently Polek has assumed oversight of daily coverage of the Helicopter Association International’s annual Heli-Expo convention.

Senior Editor

Gregory Polek

The first Airbus A321neo equipped with CFM International Leap-1A engines completed its maiden flight on Tuesday from Hamburg, Germany. During the five hour, 29 minute flight experimental test pilots Martin Scheuermann and Bernardo Saez Benito Hernandez and test-flight engineer Gérard Leskerpit performed tests on engine speed variation, systems behavior and flight envelope evaluation. Airbus expects to deliver the first production A321neo with alternative Pratt &amp; Whitney PW1100Gs at the end of the year.


Originally planning to fly the first A321neo with its PW1100G geared turbofans, Airbus switched the flight test sequence as Pratt continues work on a cooling problem that forced it to impose certain operating restrictions on the smaller A320neo related to restart. Airbus originally expected to deliver the first production A320neo to Qatar Airways, but the Persian Gulf carrier deferred delivery until Pratt &amp; Whitney resolved the cooling problem. The <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/air-transport/2016-01-20/lufthansa-takes-first-airbus-a320neo">first A320neo now flies for Lufthansa Airlines</a>.


In a statement immediately following first flight, CFM International took the opportunity to highlight what its characterizes as a flawless test program for the Leap-1A, which received <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/air-transport/2015-11-20/cfms-leap-1a-gains-dual-faa-easa-approval">joint EASA-FAA certification</a> last November.


“We could not be happier with the Leap engine and are proud of the many ‘firsts’ such as today’s flight it has powered throughout the A320neo flight-test program,” said CFM chief executive Jean-Paul Ebanga. “We have confirmed that the engine is meeting its performance specifications, and the reliability and durability it has exhibited throughout testing is a glowing testament to the professionalism and expertise of the team that is bringing this product to market.”


Airbus expects the first CFM-powered A321neo to enter service in early 2017.

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