IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers says not happy with number of grounded planes

IndiGo is not happy with the number of grounded aircraft in its fleet due to ongoing issues with Pratt and Whitney (PW) engines but is taking various “mitigating measures” such as extending the lease of existing planes and obtaining plane from the secondary market on wet lease, its chief executive officer Pieter Elbers, said on Monday.

Last Friday, the airline disclosed that out of its fleet of 334 planes, the number of grounded PW-powered aircraft has now reached the 40s, primarily due to the longstanding geared turbofan issue. The airline also said it will need to ground additional planes starting in Q4 of 2023-24 due to a new issue with PW engines. 
 

During a press conference, Elbers emphasised that the focus should be on how the airline has consistently managed to expand its capacity in accordance with its guidance, despite the challenges posed by grounded aircraft.
 

The company carried 26.3 million passengers in the September quarter, observing a 33.4 per cent year-on-year growth.

In July, PW identified a rare powder metal defect that could lead to component cracking. In September, PW announced that 600-700 engines installed on Airbus A320neo jets would need to undergo extensive quality inspections from 2023 to 2026.

IndiGo currently operates approximately 160 PW-powered planes in its fleet.
 

“The airline is operating capacity (flights) that it promised to operate. We have taken mitigating measures to deal with that (grounded aircraft situation). Does that make me happy? Of course not. We wish it was not there. We have established a good strategy at IndiGo to deal with this issue by implementing these mitigating measures,” Elbers said.
 

These mitigation measures include extending the lease period of existing A320ceo planes in the fleet and taking narrow-body and wide-body planes on wet leases. Elbers stated that the airline is continually talking with PW on how to best address this situation.
 

He also talked about the aviation regulator DGCA’s proposal earlier this month to change the regulations governing the duty hours of flight crew, including provisions for increased rest time for pilots.
 

“Topics like these (revision in pilot duty hour norms) require a very considerate, holistic and in-depth approach,” he stated.

IndiGo pilot Manoj Subramanyam, 40, died of sudden cardiac arrest at Nagpur airport around noon on August 17, just before boarding a flight that he was scheduled to fly to Pune.
 

The death brought back the focus on Indian carriers' internal procedures to handle fatigue among pilots and the flight duty time limitation (FDTL) norms, which were put in place by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in April 2019.

Following Subramanyam's death, the airline announced in September its collaboration with the French aerospace conglomerate Thales Group to create a pilot fatigue analysis tool. Using this technology, IndiGo is currently conducting tests, as well as gathering and analysing data from pilots, all with the objective of crafting flight schedules and rosters intended to alleviate pilot fatigue.

Elbers said that the airline is conducting a study on pilot fatigue and it has been open about it.

"We are doing these tests now. It would give us some more insights, more information, and we will also use that in our discussions (with the DGCA about aforementioned proposals) about precise working hours and regulatory framework," he said.

The CEO noted that the airline is also examining the framework for pilot working hours in the EU and the US, comparing it to Indian regulations.

"The best way to improve safety is to work in a transparent manner," he said.

When asked if he expects airfares to go further up in India as the number of grounded aircraft in the country is rising, he replied: "I would challenge you to make some comparison between the increase in airfares in other parts of the world and the increase of airfares in India."

He said the rise in airfares in the US and European markets have been higher.

"I think the airfares are driven by the seasonal fluctuations which we see all the time. So, yes, fares during the Christmas season are different than in May. Our Q2 yields were down as compared to Q1 (due to the usual weak travel season)," he added.

He said that the normal course of seasonality remains the key driver of airfares in India.