“Yet RR did a great job of nearly bankrupting themselves”
All of the big three, GE, P&W and RR came close to bankrupcy at around the same time. This was caused by the development of high bypass engines, which were previously unheard of. As with all new revolutionary ideas, they cost money, and a lot of it. All the big 3 risked the huge sums of money so they wouldn’t be left behind in the race for ever more fuel efficient engines.
Is the GE 7E7 engine solely produced by GE or is it an Engine Alliance Job like the A380?