IndiGo, India's biggest carrier in terms of domestic market share and fleet, said on October 25 that its grounded aircraft will reduce to mid-40 planes by April 2025 or the start of 2025-26 from the present high of 60.
The airline's management said in its post-earnings conference call that the high-60 aircraft on the ground (AOG) include aircraft that are either waiting for parts due to supply-chain challenges, or undergoing inspections after Pratt & Whitney (P&W) recalled hundreds of PW1100G engines.
IndiGo has received word from P&W that aircraft grounded due to defects with powder metal used to make some of the popular Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan engines - a flaw that can cause cracks - will be addressed by April 2025, enabling the airline to operate around 35 grounded aircraft.
Read More: IndiGo swings into red with Rs 987 crore loss
Gaurav Negi, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of IndiGo, on October 25 also said that as IndiGo starts operating its grounded aircraft it will return damp-leased aircraft, thereby reducing its rising aircraft and engine rentals costs.
Negi added that IndiGo's AOGs have started to reduce, and going forward IndiGo's spending on AOG mitigation too should reduce, thereby helping its financial performance in the coming quarters. In Q2FY25, IndiGo's aircraft and engine rentals costs rose nearly four-times to Rs 763.6 crore from Rs 195.6 crore a year ago.
The parent company of Pratt & Whitney, RTX Corp, had in September 2023 announced that about 600-700 engines would be recalled for shop visits through 2026, after the turbine engine used on new Airbus A320neo models were founded to be manufactured with flawed components. This caused the grounding hundreds of aircraft and affect nearly the entire fleet of GTF-powered Airbus A320neos since September 2023.
RTX estimated an average of 350 Airbus A320 family planes per year will be grounded from next year through 2026, and the manufacturer said it sees the financial impact of the issue at up to $7 billion.
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