Do I need my eyes checked??? Can someone tell me why they did this?
5th engine ferry flight from Singapore, according to the photo caption.
Sometimes done on a 747. I don’t know exactly why.
This is done to get an engine to an aircraft that needs one or return an engine to a maintenance center.
They can’t just stick it in an F model?
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They could but
- they may not want to pay for putting it on another airline’s flight
- they may have their own freighter available but don’t want to waste the space on non-revenue engine transfers
- the engine may not fit without taking it apart
or several other reasons but you get the idea.
Is this engine running for the flight? If not, is it allowed to freewheel in the airstream or is it locked from turning?
Not running, airflow restricted.
As David said it’s not operating. The spools are locked in place and cannot rotate so as not to damage bearings when there is no oil pressure/circulation. If you look closely at the full version of the photo you can see that a “cone” if you will…is placed on the center hub of the first stage fan. This prevents air from entering the compressor section of the engine and diverts air pressure entering the engine inlet through the by-pass section fan blades of the first stage.
I seen a HUGE turbine on the back of a flatbed last week on the I-95 heading south it was on the truck so the aft end of the eng was facing into the wind and that thing was spinning in wind and all I could think was I hope they don’t hang that thing on an AC that I catch a ride on…
Hopefully it was heading to the shop for tear down and not the other way around… 
Qantas had an engine fire just out of Singapore last week. They sent a fresh engine up to Singapore via this method, and then brought the broken one home.
Thank you everyone! Question answered… 
One of the biggest reason for this is the import taxes & duties. If it is shipped in you need to pay import duties & that is a big chunk of change on a multi-million dollar engine.
A Carne’ is a document that allows for the temporary import of goods with out paying duty or taxes provided you export the item before the predetermined deadline. Carne’s take a lot of time to set up and involve a lot of red tape and aren’t very useful for AOG aircraft parts.
Flying the part in, installed on another aircraft as equipment it is now part of the “Ship” and not cargo. You can then swap it for another like part on another one of your own ships with out taxes or much red tape. Simple, like swapping landing lights, kinda 
sorta, just a bigger scale.
How’d you get so smart 8)