Airbus Canada has stated that the technical issues that grounded many Airbus A220s have now ‘largely been resolved’, and that affected aircraft should be in the air before year-end. The geared turbofan, Pratt & Whitney engine problems, are currently affecting just 3% of the global fleet of aircraft, with these planes still out of service.
Global supply chain challenges, paired with engine problems, have affected airlines around the world, with the GTF engine issues not only affecting the A220 but also the wider A320neo family. The Airbus relationship with P&W has faced challenges as both looked for a solution to the engine issues, which is now performing close to that of the A320 family of planes.
3% Of The Global A220 Fleet Is Still Affected By Engine Troubles
As reported by Leeham News and Analysis, the recent report shared at a briefing at Montreal Mirabel, the Airbus Canada production facility, estimated that between 2% and 3% of the world’s fleet remain affected by the A220 engine saga, and the GTF engines have affected both the A220 and A320neo family of aircraft. While the crisis is now somewhat over, the issues affecting aircraft continue to be on a decreasing, and all planes are hoped to return to service before year-end.
The Technical issues that were being faced have now largely been resolved, with planes now operating at a level comparable to the benchmark of the A320 family. Engine maturity is stable and can withstand the demands of short-haul flying. Reliability has also improved following a range of design modifications that were incorporated in the latest engine standard.
Airbus’ integration of the Belfast wing production facility has also improved overall program stability, and the division, which was formerly owned by Spirit AeroSystems, has provided stronger control and stability over the industrial system.
What Grounded The A220 Fleet In The First Place
The A220 Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan engine issues’ root cause has been widely attributed to corrosion damage, which has come from production issues. This has forced many airlines to ground planes for maintenance. In November last year, approximately 17% of all of the aircraft types were grounded, with 76 of 451 out of service. 7% of this number was related to the engine problems.
Airlines most affected included SWISS, EgyptAir, and Air Austral, which had to ground all of their A220s due to these challenges. Fortunately, now the situation has been widely improved, and the majority of aircraft grounded are now back in service. The premature wear, corrosion, cracking, and failures in metal components have now been identified and mitigated, with all planes expected to be back in the air by Christmas.
For the A220, it is the backbone of regional, short-haul domestic and international operations for many airlines, which use the aircraft’s variability to operate slim routes as feeder flights into airlines’ wider networks, while carriers such as airBaltic, which operates the A220-300 aircraft exclusively, saw up to 13 of its planes grounded, significantly hampering its wider network operations. A list of the top ten A220 operators as per ch-aviation is listed below:
Airlines are taking drastic steps to solve the problems plaguing the worldwide A220 fleet.
Airbus Canada has confirmed it is still exploring the viability of a stretched version of the popular A220. Designated as the A220-500, this larger variant could seat up to a total of 189 passengers; however, mixed feedback has been received from leasing companies and airlines.
Just last month, the plane maker had mentioned it wasn’t the right time; however, now it appears that Airbus is looking at simple and low-risk solutions that the A220-500 could bring if they were to develop and manufacture the aircraft quickly and bring it to market.
For now, airlines are breathing a sigh of relief as the A220 returns to service. The remaining 3% of affected aircraft will be in the air before the year-end, and the skies could see a newer stretched version of this popular aircraft be airborne quicker than initially expected.
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