GE CAPITAL AVIATION SERVICES PLACES MULTI-YEAR BOEING ORDER EXTENDING GE CAPITAL'S LEADERSHIP POSITION IN LEASING STAMFORD, Conn., Jan. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS), a unit of GE Capital Services, announced today that it has entered into a multi-year order for five Boeing 777's and orders and options for as many as 178 Boeing 737 jetliners. Under the agreement, GECAS also may purchase up to 76 additional 737 jets, which could bring the total number of airplanes to 259. According to Boeing published list prices, the value of the firm orders will exceed $4 billion. This order will strengthen GECAS' position as one of the world's leading aircraft leasing operations. Under the agreement, GECAS has ordered five 777 wide-body twinjets, 20 current models of the 737 and 82 of the next generation of 737's now under development. GECAS also has obtained options for 76 next generation 737's -- the -600, -700 and -800. In addition, the agreement enables GECAS to purchase another 76 of the newest members of the 737 family. All of the 737 aircraft will be powered by the CFM56 engine produced by CFM International, a 50/50 joint company of GE and Snecma of France. The 777s will be powered by GE 90 engines. "This order sends a strong message to our worldwide customer base: GECAS is committed to maintaining a fleet of state-of-the-art aircraft and to delivering a full line of financial services through our 225-person sales and support organization," said GE Capital President Denis J. Nayden. "While significant, this order only slightly increases GE Capital's investment in aircraft, which currently makes up about 6% of our assets." GE Capital has over $150 billion in total assets. It is expected that GECAS will be taking delivery of approximately 25 airplanes per year over the delivery period, beginning in late 1996. Typically, the GECAS sales organization places over 200 aircraft annually with customers. GECAS President Jim Johnson said, "This transaction represents a prudent investment, given the recovery in aircraft values and the improvement in airline profits." Mr. Johnson added that the terms of the agreement will give GECAS great flexibility in meeting the changing needs of the airline customers. "This agreement enables us to purchase aircraft across the entire range of the 737 family and to make final type selections with very short lead times," he explained. "Should a customer's capacity requirements change, we will be able to buy 737s with various seating configurations from 120 to 180 seats with relatively short notice." "We are delighted by this vote of confidence in our ability to provide the most value for customers, especially since it comes from one of the world's premiere aircraft leasing companies," said Ron Woodard, President of Boeing Commercial Airplane Group. "A key part of our effort to provide more value is to shorten our production cycles so that customers like GECAS have flexibility in making important decisions." The 737 is the world's best-selling commercial jetliner, with more than 2,700 in service worldwide. The 737 is currently produced in three sizes: the 500 with 108 seats in typical two-class configuration, the 300 with 128 seats, and the 400 with 146 seats. Starting in 1997, deliveries will begin for the newest line of 737s: the 600 with 108 seats in two-class configuration, the 700 with 128 seats, and the 800 with 160 seats. GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) provides a full range of aircraft financing products and services to more than 155 airline companies in over 55 countries around the globe. GECAS provides financing for short-term and long-term equipment needs, acquisition financing, aircraft remarketing, and sale/lease back arrangements. GECAS is headquartered in Stamford, Conn. and has regional offices in Shannon, Ireland; Hong Kong; Singapore; Miami; San Francisco, and Beijing. GE Capital Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Stamford, Conn. GE Capital Services' activities include equipment management, mid-market financing, specialized financing, specialty insurance and consumer services. GE is a diversified manufacturing, technology and services company with operations worldwide. CONTACT: Neal McGarity of GE Capital Services, 203-961-2290/