Shahzaz ud din
SENIOR MEMBER
- Joined
- Jun 12, 2017
- Messages
- 7,877
- Reaction score
- 14
- Country
- Location
India still has 14 more faulty neo engine planes in operation
Manju V| TNN | Feb 13, 2018, 03:18 IST
HIGHLIGHTS
MUMBAI: After IndiGo last week withdrew three A320neo (new engine option) aircraft in the wake of the European aviation regulator’s order that all such flights in which both Pratt and Whitney (PW) engines were of a certain faulty category be grounded immediately, it has emerged that India still has 14 more A320 neos where either both engines are flawed or at least one. All 320 neos have only two engines.
Replying to a query, European aircraft manufacturer Airbus said on Monday India has 14 A320neo aircraft where either both PW engines or one is of the said category. If one engine fails, a twin engine aircraft like an A320 can safely land with the other operative engine. But aviation experts said an aircraft that starts off with one engine that’s already labelled ‘unreliable’ was not their idea of air safety.
A senior commander said: “On a three- or four-engine aircraft, having one unreliable engine is ok. But not on a two-engine aircraft like A320neo.” As of now, 113 PWpowered A320neo aircraft are flying with 18 operators around the world, said Airbus. Statistics from Indian carriers show 45 out of these are in India. IndiGo is the lead operator with 29 (excluding the 3 grounded A320neos), followed by GoAir with 13.
Last Friday, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued an emergency directive following several occurrences of engine failure reported on A320neos fitted with the certain category of PW engines. The directive said this category of PW engines was more susceptible to failure and so A320 neos with both engines belonging to this category should be grounded. But A320 neos in which only one engine was of this category have been allowed to operate.
Whether the 14 aircraft mentioned by Airbus include the three grounded by IndiGo is not clear. Currently, how many A320 neos are being operated by IndiGo and GoAir in which one of the two PW engines is a faulty one is not known. Both airlines did not respond to a specific query sent by TOI. On Monday, PW said 43 engines installed on 32 A320neo aircraft worldwide come under the affected category.
Of this, 21 aircraft have one faulty engine that belongs to the faulty category, and 11 aircraft have two engines with that configuration. It did not specify how many of these are in India. Capt Mohan Ranganathan, an air safety expert said, “Knowing that there are many obstacles, especially in Mumbai, that are higher than permitted, flights with unreliable engine raise a big question mark.’’
TOP COMMENT
What are DGCA, Gajapathi Raju and Modi doing?Sri Sri
When told that EASA had okayed operation of A320neos with one faulty engine, Capt Ranganathan said, “This is fine in a perfect system where rules and standards are conformed to and not in a case where reliability of one of two engines is questionable.” Airbus said of the total 113 aircraft worldwide, some 10% have both engines affected.
“This means a minimum of one engine needs to be changed on these aircraft. The rest of the fleet is safe to fly as per guidelines issued by DGCA and EASA,” it said. “About 30% of 113 aircraft in operation worldwide are equipped with either both or one engine affected. The speed and thoroughness with which this issue is being addressed by all stakeholders (authorities, manufacturers, suppliers) demonstrate that aviation is one of the highest regulated industries. There is no compromise on safety. It demonstrates that the global airworthiness processes work and ensure continued safe operation of aircraft,” it added.
PW said the latest problem relates to “a knife edge seal” on the engine’s high pressure compressor. It’s the latest in a long series of problems the PW 1100 engines manufactured for A320 neos have been throwing up since their introduction into the global airline fleet two years ago.
Get latest news & live updates on the go on your pc with News App. Download The Times of India news app for your device. Read more India news in English and other languages.
Manju V| TNN | Feb 13, 2018, 03:18 IST
HIGHLIGHTS
- It has emerged that India still has 14 more A320 neos where either both engines are flawed or at least one.
- Whether the 14 aircraft mentioned by Airbus include the three grounded by IndiGo is not clear.
MUMBAI: After IndiGo last week withdrew three A320neo (new engine option) aircraft in the wake of the European aviation regulator’s order that all such flights in which both Pratt and Whitney (PW) engines were of a certain faulty category be grounded immediately, it has emerged that India still has 14 more A320 neos where either both engines are flawed or at least one. All 320 neos have only two engines.
Replying to a query, European aircraft manufacturer Airbus said on Monday India has 14 A320neo aircraft where either both PW engines or one is of the said category. If one engine fails, a twin engine aircraft like an A320 can safely land with the other operative engine. But aviation experts said an aircraft that starts off with one engine that’s already labelled ‘unreliable’ was not their idea of air safety.
A senior commander said: “On a three- or four-engine aircraft, having one unreliable engine is ok. But not on a two-engine aircraft like A320neo.” As of now, 113 PWpowered A320neo aircraft are flying with 18 operators around the world, said Airbus. Statistics from Indian carriers show 45 out of these are in India. IndiGo is the lead operator with 29 (excluding the 3 grounded A320neos), followed by GoAir with 13.
Last Friday, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued an emergency directive following several occurrences of engine failure reported on A320neos fitted with the certain category of PW engines. The directive said this category of PW engines was more susceptible to failure and so A320 neos with both engines belonging to this category should be grounded. But A320 neos in which only one engine was of this category have been allowed to operate.
Relax and let us boost your website trafficTimes Group
Three or one? What would you pick?Bajaj Allianz
Whether the 14 aircraft mentioned by Airbus include the three grounded by IndiGo is not clear. Currently, how many A320 neos are being operated by IndiGo and GoAir in which one of the two PW engines is a faulty one is not known. Both airlines did not respond to a specific query sent by TOI. On Monday, PW said 43 engines installed on 32 A320neo aircraft worldwide come under the affected category.
Of this, 21 aircraft have one faulty engine that belongs to the faulty category, and 11 aircraft have two engines with that configuration. It did not specify how many of these are in India. Capt Mohan Ranganathan, an air safety expert said, “Knowing that there are many obstacles, especially in Mumbai, that are higher than permitted, flights with unreliable engine raise a big question mark.’’
TOP COMMENT
What are DGCA, Gajapathi Raju and Modi doing?Sri Sri
When told that EASA had okayed operation of A320neos with one faulty engine, Capt Ranganathan said, “This is fine in a perfect system where rules and standards are conformed to and not in a case where reliability of one of two engines is questionable.” Airbus said of the total 113 aircraft worldwide, some 10% have both engines affected.
“This means a minimum of one engine needs to be changed on these aircraft. The rest of the fleet is safe to fly as per guidelines issued by DGCA and EASA,” it said. “About 30% of 113 aircraft in operation worldwide are equipped with either both or one engine affected. The speed and thoroughness with which this issue is being addressed by all stakeholders (authorities, manufacturers, suppliers) demonstrate that aviation is one of the highest regulated industries. There is no compromise on safety. It demonstrates that the global airworthiness processes work and ensure continued safe operation of aircraft,” it added.
PW said the latest problem relates to “a knife edge seal” on the engine’s high pressure compressor. It’s the latest in a long series of problems the PW 1100 engines manufactured for A320 neos have been throwing up since their introduction into the global airline fleet two years ago.
Get latest news & live updates on the go on your pc with News App. Download The Times of India news app for your device. Read more India news in English and other languages.
