The Asian Age

‘ Operations of aircraft continuous­ly monitored’

- AGE CORRESPOND­ENT

Aviation regulator DGCA on Tuesday said it is “continuous­ly monitoring” operations of Airbus A320 ( neo) aircraft fitted with Pratt and Whitney ( PW) 1100 engines to ensure that “A320neo aircraft in the fleet of Indian operators are being operated safely” and “is not compromise­d at any stage”.

The aircraft are in the fleet of Indian carriers IndiGo and Go Air. In a statement, the DGCA said, “Three A320neo aircraft of IndiGo having both the affected engines have been grounded since February 9, 2018. In addition, IndiGo and Go Air have eight and three A320neos respective­ly with one affected engine. Since these aircraft are not approved for Extended Range Twin- engine Operation Performanc­e ( ETOPs) operations, no other additional operationa­l restrictio­n has been imposed on these 11 aircraft. DGCA continues to closely monitor operations of these aircraft so as to ensure that safety is not compromise­d.”

The DGCA added, “Accordingl­y, EASA has imposed following restrictio­ns with immediate effect: a) Within 3 flight cycles ( FC) from the effective date of this AD, do not operate aeroplane having two affected engines installed. b) Within 1 FC from the effective date of this AD, for an aeroplane having at least one affected engine( s) installed, Extended range Twin- engine Operations operations are not allowed. Indigo has three such aircraft, which have been grounded. Go Air A320neo fleet has no such issue.”

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