Plane truths: IndiGo tells A320neo pilots to fly low at 30,000 ft
NEW DELHI: InterGlobe Aviation Ltd-run IndiGo and Go Airlines (India) Ltd run GoAir, among to first to fly the new Airbus A320neo, have been forced to find ways to deal with technical snags with the Pratt & Whitney engines that power the aircraft.
IndiGo has asked its pilots to fly snag-hit A320neo planes at a lower altitude, 30,000 ft, and not the usual 36,000 ft to reduce strain on engines even though it will mean higher fuel burn. GoAir CEO Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said in an interview in February that Pratt & Whitney “will support us properly with spare engines and other support needs to be there so we can overcome the initial phase and don’t have any flight disruptions.”
A Pratt & Whitney spokesman said it has no comment on the subject.
Earlier this month the engine maker said there were no safety issues involved with the planes and replacement engines were being sent to India on cargo jets when required. Still, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has asked IndiGo and GoAir to increase surveillance of these planes, besides specifying other restrictions on when and where to fly them.
In January, an IndiGo flight had a so-called rejected takeoff at Mumbai. A GoAir flight from Delhi had to return to the airport after an engine fire 15 minutes into the flight. Last month, a GoAir flight had to effect an emergency landing and an IndiGo flight had to fly minus passengers to Delhi from Baroda.
Spokespersons for GoAir and IndiGo declined to comment for this story.
Analysts say the two airlines are facing teething troubles that early buyers of new aircraft do. They point to Air India’s troubles with Boeing’s Dreamliner.
Usually, such problems are sorted out within the first two years of a new aircraft being launched. In this case too, “technical issues will be sorted out in one-and-a-half years,” ProckSchauer said.
IndiGo, which was the launch customer for the Airbus A320neo, has about 413 planes on order; it has so far inducted 17 in its 129plane fleet. GoAir flies less than half-a-dozen of them and has about 140 on order. The planes, powered by fuel-efficient engines, are key to both airlines’ low cost model.
On March 21, Ashim Mittra, vice-president (flight operations), IndiGo said in a note to pilots that Pratt & Whitney had proposed limiting the altitude of flying to 30,000 feet for A320neos to avoid a possible glitch in the engine lubrication system and that effective March 22, IndiGo had decided to adopt the recommendation. Mint has seen a copy of the note. Since flying at lower altitudes consumes more fuel, the note asked pilots to fuel up accordingly.
Aviation analyst Mohan Ranganathan and former DGCA Kanu Gohain said it was rare for an airline to place such altitude restrictions.
Publicly known technical snags in the Neos include erroneous warnings to the pilot, longer startup times, issues with the combustor chamber lining, oil seal failures, and so-called oil chip detected warnings.
Earlier this month, top Pratt & Whitney executives met DGCA officials to discuss engine issues.