Aviation Week reports that groundings of Pratt & Whitney-powered Airbus A320neos “are climbing fast as operators remove engines for accelerated inspections recommended by the manufacturer and mandated by regulators.” The percentage of the PW1100G-powered Airbus fleet “on the ground stood at 19% at the end of September, or 267 aircraft out of 1,378 in the global fleet, an Aviation Week analysis shows.” The figure “is a 6% jump compared to August 31’s figure of 175 aircraft out of 1,358, the data show.” Mandates issued “by the FAA and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) gave affected operators until late September to remove the first batch of engines flagged for inspections.” The initial batch “consisted of about 140 engines, Pratt said when it unveiled its fleet management plan to address potential cracks in certain high-pressure turbine disks and high-pressure compressor integrally bladed rotors (IBR).
Full Story (Aviation Week)
Tag: A320neo
Pratt & Whitney Begins Test of GTF on A320neo
FlightGlobal reports, “Airbus and Pratt & Whitney have started development flight testing of a more efficient PW1100G geared turbofan – known as the GTF Advantage engine – on an A320neo aircraft.” Pratt & Whitney said, “This early flight-test campaign will continue to mature the engine by testing it in a variety of environments, including hot and cold weather and operation from high-altitude airports.” On the GTF, Pratt & Whitney President of Commercial Engines Rick Deurloo said, “[The GTF Advantage engine] enhances aircraft capability by increasing thrust and protects durability by running cooler. For airlines, this means new revenue opportunities and better operating economics. Our revolutionary geared-fan architecture is the foundation for more sustainable aviation technologies in the decades ahead, and the GTF Advantage engine is the next step in that journey.”
Full Story (FlightGlobal)