Engine issues and delivery delays could drive up prices and slow carbon-neutral progress: Lufthansa CEO

Trouble with Pratt & Whitney PW1100G turbofans and broader aerospace industry supply chain problems might drive up fares and will delay at least some carriers’ carbon-reduction plans. That is according to Lufthansa CE Carsten Spohr, who says the current state of the aerospace manufacturing industry could make ticket bargains hard to find in the next year. “I do believe that prices will be stable at least, or go up,” Spohr says on 12 September in Washington, DC. He notes that the global airline industry’s supply of new aircraft is limited by production troubles and delivery delays, and that demand meanwhile continues ramping up. “Prices are defined by the market… The demand has been continuing to be strong around the world… Growth of supply will be constrained” for the foreseeable future, Spohr says. Industry conditions will also “make it more challenging to meet our [carbon-reduction] targets”, he adds. That is because Lufthansa, like other airlines, has been relying more heavily than expected on older, less-efficient jets. Spohr says Lufthansa now intends to keep some of its first-generation A320ceo narrowbodies flying longer than previously planned. It is doing so because about half of its A320neo-family jets will be grounded in the coming year, a consequence of potentially defective disks inside the jets’ Pratt & Whitney PW1100G turbofans. P&W on 11 September said an average of 350 of PW1100G-powered aircraft will be grounded at any one time through 2026 for inspections and disk replacements. <br/>