IndiGo said on Tuesday that it expects to ground at least 35 aircraft during the March quarter next year due to problems with powder metal in Pratt & Whitney engines. Around 40 aircraft of the country’s largest airline have already been grounded due to problems with Pratt & Whitney (P&W) engines, among others, IndiGo had a fleet of 334 aircraft at the end of September. which will face capacity issues due to large number of grounded aircraft in the March quarter, while various measures are being taken to deal with the situation.
This grounding will be incremental to the existing AOG, IndiGo said in a statement. Earlier this year, P&W highlighted the impact of powder metal issues that have affected its new generation GTF aircraft engines. Globally, we understand that 600 to 700 aircraft will be phased out between 2023 and 2026, and two-thirds of these aircraft are planned to be phased out in 2023 and early 2024, IndiGo said. The airline said it will continue to work with P&W to gather more information and address the situation and implement mitigation measures to minimize the impact of these AOGs on its capacity in the fourth quarter of the current financial year and beyond.
Announcing its September quarter results on November 3, IndiGo said it is in constant touch with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to address aircraft-related challenges. “We have taken several steps to meet our capacity guidance for this financial year,” IndiGo CEO Peter Albers said on November 3. Mitigation measures include wet leasing aircraft, retaining CEO aircraft and leasing additional CEO aircraft from the secondary market.
Also Read:“It seems the courts…”: Former SC judge questions Manish Sisodia’s non-bail
Also Read:Finance Ministry’s focus on bringing all business entities under GST ambit: Sitharaman