Latest news with #PW1500G
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Sun Country retires jet, delays 737-900 service
This article first appeared in AirlineGeeks. Sun Country Airlines (NASDAQ: SNCY) plans to retire one of its Boeing 737-800 aircraft in an effort to save money on parts amid an industrywide supply chain crisis. During a Q1 2025 earnings call on Friday, CEO Jude Bricker said the decision to retire one of its 737-800s is in response to 'tightness' the carrier was experiencing in the components market. Additionally, the ultra-low-cost airline has decided to delay flying its first Boeing 737-900 passenger aircraft until later this year. Bricker said this was due to a 'temporary surplus' in the airline's passenger fleet. 'Even with this deferral, we'll experience some unit cost pressures associated with lower utilization of our passenger fleet until we're able to catch up our staffing to our fleet, which should occur around the second quarter of 2026,' he said. Despite having too many aircraft and a pinch for parts, Bricker said he expected Sun Country's charter segment to perform well through the rest of 2025, and that the company 'continues to deliver high levels of free cash yield.' 'Currently, we plan to continue to deliver with net debt levels expected to fall below zero at some point in 2028,' he said. 'However, we have the liquidity and balance sheet headroom to take advantage of any opportunities, including share repurchases using the $25 million of repurchase authority recently granted by our board.' Supply chain challenges have recently led some airlines and lessors to dismantle newer aircraft models for spare parts. Ongoing reliability issues with Pratt & Whitney's PW1500G engines have been a critical contributor to the state of the supply chain. Longer maintenance has led to multiple aircraft groundings and increased demand for spare engines. This paired with large backlogs in overall aircraft production has crippled the sector, causing airlines to extend use of existing aircraft. Other challenges in aviation's maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) industry have also persisted since the pandemic years, primarily due to shortages of skilled labor. While the industry has taken action to address the issue, the near-term future looks like it's going to be difficult. A workforce gap is projected to cause a 20% shortfall on maintenance techs in 2028, according to a 2024 Pipeline Report by the Aviation Technician Education Council. Although currently bleak, some industry insiders like the Aviation Institute of Maintenance (AIM) have suggested this crisis could be a catalyst for increased wages and greater collaboration between industry stakeholders. AIM President Jason Pfaff told AirlineGeeks in an interview earlier this year that the situation would get worse before it got better. 'If it's a nine-inning game, I'd say we're probably in the third inning,' Pfaff said in the February interview. 'It will get more challenging. But again, from our perspective, at least from some of the conversations we're having, this could also be a catalyst for a lot of really exciting change in our industry as well.' The post Sun Country retires jet, delays 737-900 service appeared first on FreightWaves. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Supply chain crisis forces airlines to get creative with aircraft parts
The commercial aviation industry is navigating a serious supply chain crisis, leading airlines and aircraft lessors to adopt innovative strategies to maintain operational readiness. Recently, aircraft lessor Azorra partnered with Delta Material Services (DMS) to dismantle an Airbus A220-300 for spare parts, marking the first such occurrence for this relatively new aircraft model. Although dismantling modern aircraft is uncommon, this situation underscores the severity of the ongoing component shortage. At the heart of the crisis are persistent issues concerning Pratt & Whitney's PW1500G engines, widely used in the Airbus A220 fleet. These engines, despite their efficiency, have faced frequent reliability concerns, resulting in numerous inspections and prolonged maintenance periods. With multiple aircraft grounded due to such complications, the demand for available spare engines and parts has grown significantly. Beyond specific engine-related challenges, manufacturers are experiencing dramatic backlogs in aircraft production, intensifying constraints across the sector. According to Alton Aviation Consultancy's latest analysis, narrowbody aircraft — which are the backbone of airlines' short- and medium-haul services — now face delivery delays of nearly a decade. Moreover, widebody aircraft production has also slowed, leaving airlines facing waits of seven to eight years for new deliveries. In turn, airlines have been compelled to adjust fleet strategies, opting to extend the useful life of existing aircraft to cope with prolonged delivery extension of aircraft lifespans has directly impacted the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) industry, resulting in significantly heightened demand precisely as MRO providers themselves face severe operational constraints. Skilled labor shortages remain a central challenge as many technicians exited aviation during the pandemic and have not returned, creating a workforce gap that could take years to mend. Training new aviation maintenance personnel is a long process, and the marked increase in maintenance requirements has overwhelmed existing capacities, prolonging maintenance downtimes substantially. These challenges extend maintenance downtime significantly and complicate securing aircraft parts to keep these aged aircraft flying these operational delays are shortages in essential aerospace materials like titanium, a situation driven largely by geopolitical disruptions in traditional supplier regions. Sanctions on primary exporters like Russia have forced manufacturers to seek alternative suppliers, leading to procurement challenges and increased costs. Given these constraints, airlines and lessors are increasingly exploring unconventional solutions, like the recent A220 dismantling, to temporarily alleviate these mounting pressures by repurposing valuable components. Despite the challenges, industry observers also recognize potential opportunities created through these constraints. Avolon, one of the world's largest aircraft leasing firms, has stated that the unprecedented disparity between supply and demand will likely reshape aviation market dynamics over the next decade. Supply deficits could bolster airline profitability, especially if carriers concentrate efforts on their most profitable route networks and achieve optimal fleet utilization amid capacity limitations. According to Avolon's analysis, net airline profits could rise as much as 16%, reaching approximately $36 billion by the broader economic environment remains uncertain. Typical economic recovery cycles last four to six years, and the current expansion is already well into its fifth year, suggesting potential economic downturn risks. Europe's economic growth is showing early signs of stagnation, and broader geopolitical instability introduces additional volatility. Related: Airbus postpones rollout of A350 freighter until late 2027 The post Supply chain crisis forces airlines to get creative with aircraft parts appeared first on FreightWaves.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
RTX's Pratt & Whitney inks agreement for Delta Tech Ops to increase GTF MRO capacity by 30%
GTF capacity to increase to 450 shop visits annually EAST HARTFORD, Conn., April 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Pratt & Whitney, an RTX (NYSE: RTX) business, and Delta Air Lines ("Delta") today announced an agreement to expand GTF overhaul capacity at Delta TechOps' Atlanta facility over the next decade. Under the agreement, the facility's annual capacity will increase by more than 30 percent with the ability to overhaul up to 450 engines per year, making it one of the largest member facilities in the Pratt & Whitney GTF™ MRO network. "Increasing MRO output is a top priority for Pratt & Whitney and our customers as we work to return engines to service as quickly as possible, and this latest capacity expansion with Delta Tech Ops will help us do just that," said Marc Meredith, vice president of aftermarket for GTF engines at Pratt & Whitney. "As we both celebrate our 100-year anniversaries in 2025, it's timely that we mark the occasion by extending our relationship as Delta ramps to provide additional, integral support of the growing GTF fleet." Delta TechOps joined the GTF MRO network in 2019 to provide maintenance services for PW1100G-JM and PW1500G engines for the Airbus A320neo and A220 aircraft families. The site inducted its first PW1100G-JM engine in 2020 and its first PW1500G engine in 2023, while also expanding its footprint to include a dedicated 155,000-square-foot GTF engine MRO facility that year. In addition to GTF MRO work, Delta TechOps provides offload support for Pratt & Whitney mature commercial engines, including the PW2000 and the PW4000-94 engines. "We continue to invest in our MRO capabilities and capacity to uphold our position as an industry-leading MRO provider," said Mike McBride, vice president, Engines & Components at Delta TechOps. "Expanding our GTF capacity allows us to grow our technical knowhow and to continue to provide top-notch service and reliability for our fleet and our customers." Pratt & Whitney currently powers more than 320 aircraft in Delta's fleet – more than 140 of which are either A220s or the A321neo. The Pratt & Whitney GTF MRO network is comprised of the industry's leading MRO companies and includes 20 shops across four continents and additional sites with quick-turn capability. The GTF MRO network is part of Pratt & Whitney's EngineWise® solutions, which provide engine operators with a variety of aftermarket services resulting in long-term, sustainable value. About Pratt & WhitneyPratt & Whitney is a world leader in the design, manufacture and service of aircraft engines and auxiliary power units. To learn more visit About RTX RTX is the world's largest aerospace and defense company. With more than 185,000 global employees, we push the limits of technology and science to redefine how we connect and protect our world. Through industry-leading businesses – Collins Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, and Raytheon – we are advancing aviation, engineering integrated defense systems for operational success, and developing next-generation technology solutions and manufacturing to help global customers address their most critical challenges. The company, with 2024 sales of more than $80 billion, is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. For questions or to schedule an interview, please contact corporatepr@ View original content: SOURCE RTX Sign in to access your portfolio
