German airline Lufthansa said Thursday a third of its 30-strong Airbus SE A220 fleet in Switzerland was temporarily grounded due to issues with Pratt & Whitney engines. This comes a day after Indian budget carrier Go First suspended all flights for 72 hours and filed for insolvency after blaming the American manufacturer for ‘a financial crunch due to non-supply of engines… which has forced the company to ground 28 planes, over half of its fleet’.
Worldwide airlines are dealing with a shortage of engines and spare parts – particularly for those on the latest-generation of narrowbody ‘workhorse’ aircrafts – with Pratt & Whitey suppliers struggling with a backlog of subcomponent orders. “Way down in their (P&W’s) supply chains there are elements missing…” Lufthansa chief Carsten Spohr told analysts.
Meanwhile, Airbus has vowed to pick up the pace of deliveries in the second half of 2023 after lacklustre output weighed on profit and sales in Q1. It also said it is aware of ‘persistent’ supply chain issues and is ‘very closely monitoring’ issues with Pratt’s Geared Turbo Fan unit.
Carriers’ engines and grounded planes woes come as there is renewed demand for travel, and as the sector attempts to bounce back from the devastating blow of the Covid pandemic.
Earlier today, Go First said it is extending suspension of flight operations till May 9 and sale of fresh tickets till May 15. The airline – which claims a loss of ₹10,800 crore after issues with the P&W engines – has also been ordered to refund affected passengers in full.
The Director-General of Civil Aviation said it had examined the airline’s response to the ‘show cause’ notice issued Wednesday and issued an order directing it to process tickets refunds to passengers in line the timelines stipulated in relevant regulations.