LATAM Airlines CEO Roberto Alvo urges engine manufacturers to "intensify efforts" to solve issues
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Roberto Alvo, CEO of LATAM Airlines Group and president of the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA), has issued a new call to engine manufacturers to accelerate solutions for the durability issues affecting the industry.
During the opening press conference of the ALTA AGM & Airline Leaders Forum taking place in Lima, in which Aviacionline participated, Alvo highlighted the severity of the situation that has left hundreds of aircraft out of service.
"It is a reality that we generally face with different fleets and, in various cases, still significant engine durability challenges," stated Alvo. The executive estimated the global impact of these problems at "nearly 600 grounded aircraft in the world today." This situation occurs at a critical time, just as the industry is recovering from the pandemic and the growth prospects in the region are positive.
The problem primarily affects the engine families that power the Airbus A320neo, Boeing 737, and Embraer E-Jets E2, as well as other long-haul aircraft, limiting the airlines' ability to respond to growing passenger demand. Alvo emphasized the frustration of the airlines, which see their multi-million dollar investments paralyzed.
"This ends up being an important matter," Alvo continued, acknowledging the work already being done by the manufacturers. However, he considered it a "good opportunity to call for an intensification of those efforts." The goal, in his words, is "so that we can make the most of the large investments we airlines make in aircraft and keep these planes flying."
A problem with a specific name: the GTF engines
Although the LATAM CEO referred to a widespread challenge, the current crisis, in his airline's specific case, has a main protagonist: the Pratt & Whitney PW1100G-JM engines, known as GTF, which power a portion of the global A320neo family fleet (as well as the A220 and Ejets E2 families).
To date, according to data obtained from Cirium Fleet Analyzer, the LATAM group has 14 A320neo and 2 A321neo in storage, although at the time of this publication, we cannot confirm if all cases are due to engine problems.
Manufacturing defects related to metal powder forced the manufacturer and authorities to issue directives for early inspections that took hundreds of aircraft out of service.
This scenario creates enormous pressure on the supply chain and MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Operations) shops, which are struggling to handle the volume of engines requiring inspection.
Alvo concluded his remarks by noting that the issue is "well-known in the industry, and progress has been made." Nevertheless, a definitive solution is not yet within reach, and airlines will have to continue managing the shortage of grounded aircraft in the coming months.
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