Indian authorities have instructed the country's Airbus A320neo operators to replace the Pratt & Whitney PW1100G engines on the type with an upgraded version of the powerplant by the end of January 2020. IndiGo and GoAir each have the PW1100G on their A320neo fleets. Civil aviation regulator DGCA issued a directive a week ago requiring the two carriers to have at least one modified engine on aircraft with more than 2,900h. The airlines were given up to 19 November to meet this requirement. But on 1 November, the regulator ordered the carriers to ensure that all their A320neos have both powerplants modified with new third-stage low-pressure turbines, by 31 January next year. IndiGo says it has already modified about 45% of its A320neo engines, and is confident that it will be able to meet the deadline A year ago, a spate of aborted take-offs and in-flight engine shutdowns led to the grounding of 11 A320neos. Two key parts of the engine, its third-stage low-pressure turbine and gearbox, had to be replaced. The revised requirements come after IndiGo suffered another series of engine shutdowns, its latest taking place on 1 November. The airline confirmed the engine issues in a stock exchange disclosure. “We are working with both P&W and Airbus on mitigation so that we have enough modified spare engines by January 31, 2020,” the airline adds, pointing out that its schedules "remain intact”. GoAir has yet to respond to FlightGlobal requests for comment. In late August, the DGCA stated that it was keeping a close watch on the PW1100G engine performance. It imposed directives on IndiGo and GoAir, including restricting them from accepting leased engines, or engines from MROs, without modified parts. IndiGo was an early operator of the PW1100G-powered A320neo and suffered some of the engine’s early reliability issues. Most recently at the Paris Air Show, the airline pivoted away from P&W engines to the rival CFM International Leap-1A to power 280 A320neos on order. Cirium’s fleets data indicates GoAir operates 38 A320neos while IndiGo has 91 A320neos powered by PW1100G engines.

Source: FlightGlobal

Avianca has confirmed that it is no longer interested in buying Mexican regional operator Aeromar, as the Colombian carrier focuses on executing a strategic plan to restore profitability within its core business in its home country and Central America. German Efromovich, Avianca's previous controlling shareholder, had embarked on an ambitious international expansion strategy under which airlines operated under the Avianca brand in Ecuador, Peru, Brazil and Argentina. However, Avianca Brasil and Avianca Argentina both filed for bankruptcy and went into liquidation while Avianca Peru pulled out of most domestic markets. Mexico was the latest territory Avianca intended to conquer by acquiring a majority stake in ATR turboprop operator Aeromar. However, Avianca's new chief executive Anko van der Werff, formerly Aeromexico's commercial chief, makes clear that expanding into Mexico through an Avianca-controlled local carrier is no longer an option. "I never considered [acquiring Aeromar] a good idea [for Avianca] nor is this going to happen with the current leadership team," says van der Werff. "We already have a codeshare agreement with Aeromexico, which is much larger and offers more frequencies. Investing in Aeromar would not give us any benefits," he argues.

Source: FlightGlobal

Thai Airways International's chairman has stepped down amid continuing pressure over the loss-making airline's financial performance. Ekniti Nitithanprapas resigned from his position on 1 November, the flag-carrier states. Thai has named vice-chairman Chaiyapruk Didyasarin to take up the duties in the interim. Didyasarin had only been appointed to the vice-chairmanship in mid-October. The carrier has not specified a reason for Nitithanprapas's sudden departure. But the airline had been forced to assure last month that the airline was not facing the possibility of closure, while stating that its president had been pointing out to personnel that competition in the industry was proving strong.

The president had spoken to staff to "motivate them to take immediate action" to cut costs and lift profits. Thai's half-year financial statement shows that carrier turned in a consolidated pre-tax loss of Bt6.1 billion ($205 million) for the first six months, four times the previous interim loss. The airline's revenues declined sharply and could not offset expenditure, despite a lower fuel bill and reduced impairment losses on aircraft. Its balance sheet also shows that its current liabilities of Bt87.1 billion exceed its current assets of Bt50.6 billion. Thai's overall assets of Bt262 billion are nevertheless greater than its overall liabilities of Bt245 billion.

Source: FlightGlobal