Engine issues: IndiGo cancels 84 flights, ground 13 A320 Neo planes

Mumbai: InterGlobe Aviation-run budget carrier IndiGo on Friday cancelled over 80 flights as the airline grounded more Airbus A320 Neo (new engine option) planes due to engine issues.

As many as 13 A320 Neo aircraft are on ground due to the Pratt & Whitney-supplied engine issues, forcing the airline to cancel 84 flights, sources told PTI.

The frequent grounding of the A320 planes is taking place due to multiple issues, including engine failure, the sources said.

According to the sources, a total of 667 flights were cancelled by IndiGo between June 21 and July 3 this year, with 61 flights cancelled on June 27 alone, due to the grounding of these planes.

IndiGo president and whole-time director Aditya Ghosh had during the post-Q1 earnings call on July 31 said that "regrettably, there have been days when we have had to ground as many as nine A320 Neo (planes) due to lack of spare engines. While we do receive certain compensation from Pratt & Whitney for these groundings, the operational disruptions are quite challenging and we are not happy with that situation."

The sources also said that of the 667 flights cancelled by IndiGo in 13 days, a total of 504 flights were cancelled between June 21 and June 30, while the remaining 163 were cancelled on the first three days of July.

A response to the queries sent to IndiGo on the issue was awaited.

A text message sent to the Director General of Civil Aviation, B S Bhullar, seeking response to a query whether the DGCA was considering grounding of the entire Airbus A320 Neo fleet with Pratt & Whitney engines, did not yield any response.