Just As Travel Is Rebounding, Airlines Are Struggling With Engines

This year was meant to be the year of the great return for air travel, with China reopening, airlines increasing flight schedules, and airports recruiting to keep up with the demand.

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Yet, a significant roadblock to expansion exists in the shape of a scarcity of aircraft engines and spare parts, notably on workhorse Airbus SE and Boeing Co. planes. The shortage is aggravated by the fact that more carriers are flying with the latest-generation turbines, which, while up to 20% more fuel efficient, have required significantly more frequent maintenance cycles than their more durable predecessors.

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As a result, airlines worldwide have been forced to halt hundreds of flights just as they prepare for what is expected to be a busy summer travel season. Air Baltic Corp AS reports that 10 of its 39 Airbus A220s are now grounded due to engine problems. Spirit Airlines Inc., a low-cost carrier based in the United States, announced plans to throttle back growth, owing in part to a string of engine failures. And IndiGo in India is suing for compensation for the 30 planes it had to ground owing to parts shortages, some of which were engine-related.

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Even before the pandemic, supply-chain restrictions were affecting the sector, and in the aftermath, engine manufacturers have suffered with a dearth of experienced technicians and component shortages.

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Exotic metal alloys, coatings, and composites are used in the newest engines from Raytheon Technologies Inc. and a joint venture between General Electric Co. and Safran SA. According to airlines, turbine components are wearing out faster and need to be replaced sooner than projected.

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Running Hot

The Pratt & Whitney subsidiary of Raytheon provides the engines for the aircraft operated by AirBaltic, Spirit, and IndiGo. According to a person familiar with the situation, Go First, another Indian cheap airline that was forced to ground 24 aircraft, is suing Pratt for compensation.

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There are more engine-related issues than before, according to Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker. "The engines are operating hotter and the materials utilized for that are not withstanding the pressure," he stated.

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Due to often lengthy delays for key parts, turnaround times for engine repairs have quadrupled. The need for increased engine power from Airbus and Boeing as they work to produce their best-selling single-aisle airplane types in record numbers has further depleted supplies of engine components.

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The engine market is currently "hotter than hell," according to Texas-based aviation analyst Cliff Collier. He referred to maintenance and repair organizations (MROs) and added, "There are component shortages left and right, and it's hitting MROs tremendously.

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At a Thursday presentation, GE Chief Executive Officer Larry Culp and other executives outlined the company's future as a stand-alone aircraft producer. Executives discussed steps taken to increase the longevity of the Leap turbine produced by the company CFM International for the Boeing 737 Max and Airbus A320neo aircraft families.

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At the investor conference, Russell Stokes, CEO of GE Aerospace's commercial engines and services, stated that the Leap's durability was his company's top focus. "We want the engine on the wing to make money for our consumers, just where it should," the speaker said.

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Mohamed Ali, vice-president for engineering at GE Aerospace, claims that the Leap engine's time-on-wing is superior to that of its predecessor, the CFM56, at the same point in its service life, or roughly six years after its first commercial flight, despite the fact that the engine's removal rate and maintenance requirements fall short of customer expectations.

Closing the Gap

The most recent turbofan models produced by Raytheon's Pratt & Whitney subsidiary can fly for an average of 10,000 hours before needing to be taken out of service for maintenance. Despite several adjustments and updates to increase longevity, that's only roughly half the so-called time-on-wing of its previous engine, Raytheon CEO Greg Hayes noted at a Barclays conference last month. For the following five years, he warned, it will be difficult to close that margin.

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Cirium data indicates that 737 Boeing Max aircraft, together with about 370 Airbus A320neo and A220 aircraft, are now categorized as being stored. Such aircraft are those that sit idle for 30 days or more for any number of reasons, according to the aviation data and analytics business.

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Airbus stated that it regularly monitors the operation of the engines on its products. Boeing declined to respond right away.

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There are just not enough new engines on hand to keep up with maintenance, despite the fact that many airlines have a stock of spares on standby. Carriers could have to maintain older aircraft longer than expected and fly each plane for a greater number of hours each day. In a hurry, they might even remove aircraft from their fleets used for pilot training and place them in normal flying operation. Plans by the sector to increase the number of flights available in 2024 and beyond might be hampered by the shortfall.

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Production Target Risk

For their A320 and Max production lines to remain productive, Airbus and Boeing are depending on increasing turbine power. According to Paul Dolan, CEO of Aviation Technical Services, a significant US maintenance contractor, the backlog of engine repairs appears set to last beyond 2019 or possibly 2025, increasing the possibility that there won't be enough power plants to satisfy planemaker output objectives.

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The new engine choices for the A320 family and the 737, which were introduced a little over ten years ago, assisted in causing an extraordinary increase in demand. Any decrease in fuel use immediately boosts the company's bottom line because it is sometimes one of the biggest expenditures for airlines.

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Airbus SE's best-selling A320neo family, the smaller A220, Embraer SA's E2 regional aircraft, and other models all employ Pratt's engine. Nevertheless, the engine experienced teething problems following its introduction, with many airlines reporting in-flight shutdowns. Afterwards, Pratt claimed to have fixed the problems, however several carriers claim they are still having trouble.

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Ted Christie, the CEO of Spirit, stated on a Feb. 7 earnings conference that the Pratt engine "has seen decreasing service availability, a problem that has been continuously worsening" since mid-2022. It's not just a Spirit issue, though.

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According to Doug Harned, an aerospace expert at Bernstein, certain A320neo engines have been removed after just 2,000 to 3,000 hours in service, while A220 engines have been removed after only 1,000 hours. According to a source acquainted with the situation, engines on Go First's A320neos failed at 4,900 hours. According to the individual, the airline has had 41% of its fleet grounded and has had to seek a $525 million loan from its parent over the last two years in order to stay viable.

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As of early March, 18% of A220s and 13% of A320neos powered by these engines were out of service, according to Harned. Although 4% of A320s and 5% of Max aircraft remain grounded, much to the chagrin of customers, CFM's Leap has fared better, he said in a March 2 report.

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A Raytheon spokesman refuted the projections for Pratt-powered planes, claiming that fewer than 10% of those planes are parked. The business refuses to comment further on the concerns, including the grounded planes of Go First.

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Store Visiting

The GE-Safran Leap model has also had problems. Carbon buildup around the fuel nozzle has necessitated inspections after 1,000 hours of flight, according to Harned. The engine's high-pressure turbine shroud has been changed in recent years, but it "continues to contribute to a decrease in engine performance" and, as a result, more frequent repair visits, he claims.

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CFM said it released a new high-pressure turbine shroud configuration in 2019 and is upgrading the remainder of the Leap engine fleet with the update.

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Airlines confront another pricey snag once engines are opened up for repairs: long waits for replacement components.

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"We're basically seeing a wait building up owing to limited maintenance capacity," said Andy Cronin, CEO of Avolon Holdings, a large aircraft lessor. "It was never expected for the engines to require this much maintenance at this point in the development."