Martin Gauss, the CEO of Air Baltic, foresaw this issue weeks ago. "The problem with Pratt & Whitney is still growing," Gauss said in June during an interview with the aviation portal Aerotelegraph, and he was correct. While initially shortened maintenance intervals caused concerns in the aviation industry, it's now a matter of powdered metal. Contaminations have occurred in components made from this material, which is melted under high pressure and temperature. As a result, the engine manufacturer is recalling aircraft equipped with its PW1100G engines, built between late 2015 and late 2021. These engines are primarily installed in Airbus A320neo airplanes.

Originally, it was announced that 200 aircraft would undergo checks in September, with an additional 1,000 scheduled for the following year. However, the situation escalated. At an analyst conference a few days ago, the parent company of the American engine manufacturer, Raytheon Technologies (RTX), admitted that in the coming years, 3,000 engines will be removed from aircraft for inspections. It represents almost all the geared fan drives the manufacturer has delivered so far. The inspections are expected to continue until 2026, with the engines requiring repeated checks every 2,800 to 3,800 flights thereafter, according to Pratt & Whitney.

According to Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr, the engine problems will continue to plague the industry. Not only that, but it's "extremely frustrating" that the strong demand is facing supply issues on the industry's side, Spohr recently commented. Consequently, improvements in the carbon footprint are also lacking, as new engines emit 25% to 30% fewer pollutants than their predecessors. "The problems are deep-seated, extending through multiple layers of the supply chain, with new issues arising," explained the Lufthansa CEO.

The Pratt & Whitney engine issues will result in 20 out of Lufthansa's 70 Airbus A320neo jets requiring unscheduled engine overhauls next year. These aircraft will be absent from the fleet, with the repairs expected to cause an average downtime of 250 to 300 days. Pratt & Whitney has set aside $6 billion for customer compensation due to the material shortage, a sum considered rather low, as consensus in the airline industry suggests. Lufthansa also plans to negotiate for compensation, and Spohr hinted at an "interesting battle." Airbus major customer Wizz Air has also stated its intention to seek financial compensation from the engine manufacturer. The temporary grounding of affected aircraft could lead the company to reduce its capacity by 10% next year, as indicated by the rapidly growing Hungarian low-cost airline.

JetBlue Airways, a US carrier, recently stated that the biggest obstacles to growth are ongoing delays in aircraft deliveries and the machines that remain grounded for repairs. Instead of the originally expected 30, they are only receiving 19 new Airbus aircraft this year. "We have a very large order book for new airplanes, but they're all coming too late," said CEO Robin Hayes in a Bloomberg interview. "Furthermore, there are engine issues. And there are new aircraft sitting without motors because there aren't enough engines." There have also been reports of finished aircraft awaiting seats. "We will need to get creative in sourcing aircraft to continue JetBlue's growth trajectory," added CFO Ursula Hurley.

The list of airlines affected by supply shortages and engine problems could continue indefinitely, especially since the Airbus A320neo, which is currently most affected, is a bestseller and widely used by many airlines worldwide. Airlines are attempting to supplement their fleets with leased aircraft, but even this market is quite depleted.

MTU CEO Lars Wagner recently likened the necessary inspection of aircraft to a "surgical procedure focused on the turbine disc." MTU, which is involved in the engine program, expects a drop in revenue and a decrease in operating profit of around €1 billion for the current fiscal year. Pratt & Whitney, on the other hand, anticipates a financial burden of $3 billion to $3.5 billion in the coming years.

The bad news is that, according to Aerotelegraph, contaminated powdered metal may not be limited to Pratt & Whitney engines alone. Olivier Andriès, CEO of the French corporation Safran, which, together with GE, manufactures the engines in the CFM Leap series, stated, "We also identified a quality problem during the inspection of rotating parts at CFM in the summer of 2021. The cause was contamination of powdered metal at a supplier for a limited number of batches." At the time, all necessary measures were taken, customers were informed, and adjustments were made during maintenance cycles. There were no engine failures or disruptions for customers.