RTX’s engine flaw proves to be a boon to short-term jet rental firms

Airlines are scrambling to find replacements for hundreds of single-aisle jetliners that will be sidelined by a recently discovered engine issue, providing a boon to companies that lease out aircraft and crews.

About 3,000 Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan engines powering the Airbus SE A320neo — the industry’s top-selling jet — must be removed and brought in to repair shops over the next three years to check for potentially flawed components made from contaminated metal powder, Pratt parent RTX Corp. said on Monday. 

The issue will ground hundreds of aircraft for months, depriving carriers of capacity amidst a post-pandemic rebound in air travel. Companies that lease out aircraft and crew on a temporary basis stand to benefit, according to the founder of Avia Solutions Group, which provides aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance on a short-term basis, also referred to as wet-leasing.

Avia, whose customers include Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Turkish Airlines and British Airways, is in talks with airlines about providing temporary capacity while their GTF engines are inspected in workshops, Avia founder Gediminas Ziemelis said in an interview.

“This reminds me of the situation when the Max was grounded,” said Ziemelis, referring to the prolonged grounding of the Boeing Co. 737 Max model following two fatal crashes. To fill the void, airlines were forced to seek alternative capacity. 

Lufthansa expects to wet-lease 40 to 50 aircraft next summer as part of its plan to backfill capacity when its GTF-powered A320s go in for shop visits, the German airline’s chief executive officer, Carsten Spohr, said at an event in the US on Tuesday.

Avia has a fleet of 196 planes across the world that are available for ACMI operations, Ziemelis said. About 60% of its capacity will likely be earmarked for long-term contracts while it will keep 40% for last-minute spot operations, he said. 

Monday’s announcement by RTX dramatically expanded the scope of required engine checks due to a flaw it disclosed in late July. The Pratt GTF is one of two power plants offered for the A320neo, with about a 40% share behind competitor CFM International.