Air Transat seeks to offset capacity lost due to Pratt PW1100G engine problems

Its fleet beset by grounded Airbus A321LRs needing Pratt & Whitney (P&W) geared turbofan (GTF) engine work, Canadian airline company Transat AT is adding both newly leased and previously ordered aircraft to partially offset the lost capacity. “In light of expected grounded A321LR aircraft, we have recently secured three A330 aircraft leases to support network needs for the upcoming year as planned,” CE Annick Guerard said during the company’s 14 March earnings call. The parent of Montreal-based carrier Air Transat also expects to have four new A321LRs delivered within the next several weeks. The carrier currently has 12 A321s in service, according to Cirium fleets data. The fleet additions will partially offset A321LRs grounded due to PW1100G engine issues. Air Transat has reduced its expectations for full-year capacity gains, to an increase of 13% from a previously estimated 19% increase. Transat currently has four of the long-range A321neo narrowbody jets out of service for PW1100G engine work, with that number expected to rise to five or six by the end of the company’s fiscal year on 31 October. ”Due to the operating challenges caused by the Pratt and Whitney engine situation, as well as the problems affecting the Boeing 737 Max, a number of carriers are looking for aircraft,” Guerard says. ”Those issues, combined with an already-stressed to supply chain, are putting important pressures on the availability and the cost of aircraft.” P&W’s recall of hundreds of PW1100G powerplants requires those engines to come off-wing for inspection and repair – a process that takes months. Hundreds of A320neo-family aircraft are grounded globally as a result. <br/>