Pratt & Whitney is close to fix for part that delayed Airbus jets

Pratt & Whitney is close to finalising the redesign of a faulty engine part that forced Airbus to halt deliveries of its A320neo narrow-body jet at the start of the year. Once approved by regulators, the revamped knife-edge seal would be fitted to turbines during regular maintenance and without any further disruption, Airbus executive Klaus Roewe, who heads the A320 program, said. Pratt first redesigned the seal last year after the original version was found to be prone to excessive wear. The new variant proved even more problematic, introducing a glitch that safety regulators warned could lead to mid-flight shutdowns. The United Technologies unit reverted to the initial design in order to maintain production while working on a permanent replacement. A spokeswoman for Pratt & Whitney declined to comment on work on the company’s geared turbofan engine, which is used on the A320neo. GE-led CFM International, which competes to power the plane, has also suffered issues with its Leap design. All told, Airbus has been forced to store up about 100 of the narrow-body aircraft while they await engines, about two-thirds of them because of the issues at Pratt. Roewe said that with fixes at hand deliveries this year should still be completed as planned.<br/>