DGCA Says Airbus A320neo Engine Problems Contained, Cautions Against Knee-Jerk Grounding

India’s civil aviation regulator on Wednesday said it’s monitoring the performance of Pratt & Whitney engines in Airbus A320neo planes and will take the “harshest” action if the need arises.

But any knee-jerk reaction to shut operations will have severe consequences, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said in statement after meeting representatives of airlines IndiGo and GoAir. “About 40 percent of the domestic seat capacity is powered by neo engines.”

The regulator asked Pratt & Whitney to ensure easy availability of spare engines in case aircraft are grounded because of engine problems. There have been cases of mid-air turnback, in-flight shutdowns or engine vibrations, the DGCA said, adding that the problem is being contained. Nine such issues have been reported in India since January, it said.

IndiGo and GoAir have been facing glitches in P&W engine-powered aircraft since their induction in 2016. While IndiGo has 92 such aircraft in its fleet, GoAir has 35, the DGCA statement said. The engine problems had led to grounding of a few IndiGo A320neo planes this year.