30 Indigo Airplanes Grounded Over Supply Chain Disruptions Since Last 7 Days; No Update On Resumption Of Services

IndiGO Airlines on 7 November said that around 30 aircraft are grounded due to ‘supply chain disruptions’. The country’s largest airline is evaluating wet leasing of planes and other options to boost operations.

When it comes to the daily departures, the airline is also the world’s seventh largest.  At the end of September, it had 279 aircraft in its fleet. 

The aviator operates more than 1,600 daily flights and currently flies to 100 destinations, including 26 international ones.

‘Supply chain disruptions’ Grounds 30 Planes

As many as 30 planes of IndiGo are grounded due to supply chain problems.

As the aviation industry continues to face significant supply chain disruptions globally, around 30 aircraft are on the ground for Indigo.

The spokesperson said that “While it is our immediate priority to deploy adequate capacity to serve our customers, we are actively engaged with our OEM partners to work on mitigation measures that should ensure the continuity of our network and operations”. He added that “As we work on various cost-efficient countermeasures with our OEM partners, the endeavour is to minimise the economic impact of around 30 AOG (Aircraft on Ground), resulting from this global disruption”.

The airline is looking at slowing down redeliveries through lease extensions, exploring the re-induction of aircraft into the fleet, and evaluating the wet lease options within the regulatory guidelines.

The airline said that “We are bullish on the market opportunities and will continue to add flights in existing and new markets”.

The carrier has a domestic market share of more than 57 per cent.

The aviation consultancy firm CAPA on November 1, said that more than 75 planes of Indian carriers are currently grounded due to maintenance and engine-related issues.

CAPA had said in its India Mid-Year Outlook 2023 that these planes which account for around 10-12 per cent of the Indian fleet, are grounded due to maintenance or engine-related issues, said that “These will have a significant impact on financials in the second half”.

Shortage of Spare Engines

IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers, during earnings call with analysts on November 4, said that supply chain disruption in aircraft manufacturing and subsequent shortage of spare engines worldwide have impacted the airline’s operations due to the grounding of aircraft.

He said that “The challenges are forcing us to look at different ways and means in order to make sure that we have the capacity to operate”.

In the September quarter, IndiGo’s parent InterGlobe Aviation reported a widening of loss to ?1,583.34 crore due to higher fuel costs and foreign exchange loss.