​​​​​​​Grounded IndiGo, GoAir Aircraft Were Not On A Wing And A Prayer

DGCA’s decision to ground A320neo aircraft with just one faulty engine lacks technical merit and demonstrates lack of professionalism, say analysts

- Anshul Dhamija

AN AIRCRAFT’S ENGINES, which conspicuously hang below its wings, generating the required thrust for propulsion, are said to be the heart of an aeroplane. So much so that when recurrent in-flight engine shutdowns were reported in some Airbus A320neo aircraft, powered by a certain series of Pratt & Whitney (PW)-made engines, India’s civil aviation watchdog couldn’t help but sit up and take notice.

On March 12, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) decided to ground 11 twin-engine A320neo aircraft—eight of them operated by IndiGo and three by GoAir—with at least one faulty PW engine. Two other airlines, Air India and Vistara, which also fly the A320neo, were not affected by the order as they use engines made by CFM International.

The groundings have shaved off1-2 percent from India’s overall domestic air travel capacity. According to the ministry of civil aviation, 378 flights were cancelled between March 15 and 21, compared with total departures of 18,781 during the same period. The capacity impact is likely to remain the same until the grounded aircraft resume operations. “The ministry has been monitoring prices on the impacted routes: There has not been any significant or abnormal increase in air fares,” read a statement from the civil aviation ministry.

The trivial impact on capacity and prices apart, the brouhaha over air safety that followed the groundings “was as though the world had come to an end”, believes Devesh Agarwal, editor, Bangalore Aviation, an aviation news web portal.

Given that aircraft are designed to fly with just one engine, has the DGCA overestimated the gravity of the issue?