TIL Desk/Business/New Delhi/ All 14 Pratt & Whitney engine-powered Airbus A320 Neo planes of the two budget carriers — IndiGo and GoAir — which were grounded between February and March this year due to safety concerns are now back into operation, officials said. Of these 14 planes, 11 were of IndiGo and three of the Wadia group-promoted GoAir.
None of the 11 A320 Neo planes fitted with P&W engines which were taken out of operation due to the engine glitches are now on ground. All these planes are back into service, an IndiGo official said. A GoAir official also said that its three Airbus A 320 Neos which were grounded by the regulator DGCA on March 12 are now flying again.
However, spokespersons of both IndiGo and GoAir were not available for comments. In February, three IndiGo aircraft, with both faulty engines, were grounded. This followed the European Aviation Safety Agency issuing an emergency airworthiness directive on February 9 after a few occurrences of aborted take-off and in-flight shut down on A320 Neo fleet worldwide.
On March 12, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation ordered grounding of 11 A320 Neo planes fitted with faulty P&W 1100 engines having serial number of 450 and beyond, citing safety concerns. The DGCA cracked the whip after an IndiGo flight bound for Lucknow returned to Ahmedabad within 40 minutes of getting airborne due to a mid-air engine failure on March 12.
