IndiGo Engine Issue: (DGCA) Warns Pratt & Whitney (P&W) On Faulty engines (image: twitter.com/India in Azerbaijan
Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has warned jet engine makers Pratt & Whitney (P&W) after three incidents of faulty P&W engines on IndiGo aircraft. The incidents in quick succession resulted in In-flight Shut Downs (IFSDs) necessitated Original Equipment Manufacturer’s (OEM) mediation for mitigation.
The DGCA took the matter to P&W on September 1. The aviation regulator has asked the P&W to recognise such problems and explore the possibility of early recognition rather than resulting in-flight engine failures. According to a senior official, PW is required to provide comprehensive data on global engine failures and propose measures to mitigate them, reports businessline.
The Madurai-Mumbai and the Kolkata-Bengaluru flights, operated with A321 neo planes on August 28, are the two in-flight shutdown incidents, and the Amritsar-Delhi flight, operated with an A320 neo aircraft on September 3, constitutes the third.
As a precautionary measure, IndiGo conducted borescopic inspections (BSI) on P&W engines, but no abnormalities were found during the inspections.
“Accordingly, three engines were identified and the BSI was carried out, however, no abnormality was observed in any of the engines. As a matter of abundant precaution, Indigo was further directed to undertake BSI on the engines installed on the A321 aircraft, which had done more than 2,500 hours since the last shop visit, accordingly, five engines were identified, and the BSI was done on the identified engines however, no abnormality was observed in any of the engines,” the official statement said.
Since the aviation industry is monitoring the situation, DGCA, Pratt & Whitney, and IndiGo, in close cooperation, are working to secure the safety and reliability of the engines powering Airbus A320 neo family planes.
IndiGo is among the fastest-growing transporters in the world. As Mint reports, since its first A320neo aircraft were delivered in March 2016, its fleet of A320neo aircraft has grown into one of the world’s largest, with 264 aircraft in operation (162 A320neo, 79 A321neo, 21 A320ceo, and 2 A321 freighters).
