Two grounded aircraft to return to operations soon, says ATCL

Dar es Salaam. Air Tanzania Company Limited (ATCL) is optimistic that its remaining two Airbus A220-300 planes that have been grounded due to engine problems will be back in service next month.

On account of technical issues with the Pratt and Whitney engines, the national carrier grounded three of its four Airbus A220-300 twin-jets last November.

One of the aircraft is back in service after the engine manufacturer provided replacement power plants last December, according to ATCL managing director Ladislaus Matindi.

Four more engines

This means that the airline needs four more spare engines for the other two planes, whose power plants have been taken to a maintenance facility in Frankfurt, Germany.

“We expect to receive more spare engines from March,” Mr Matindi told The Citizen by telephone yesterday.

It has taken a long time for the grounded aircraft to be back in service because the manufacturer is overwhelmed by the sheer number of replacement engines that are needed around the world.

The Citizen understands that there are 250 Airbus A220-300’s globally, with the majority said to have been grounded due to engine problems.

ATCL announced last November that it was temporarily suspending some of its scheduled flights, especially those served by Airbus A220-300’s.

ATCL and other airlines operating this particular aircraft type are said to have incurred “huge” losses as a result of groundings.

However, Mr Matindi was not ready to state exactly how much the carrier has lost so far, but he said ATCL was still negotiating compensation with the manufacturer.

“The compensation being issued is small compared to the loss we have incurred after grounding our aircraft,” he said.

Leasing aircraft

Mr Matindi said the airline was also considering leasing aircraft to bridge the gap.

“We are currently monitoring demand. We may consider leasing aircraft if demand exceeds the airline’s capacity.”

ATCL currently flies to 24 destinations, including 14 domestic routes, from its Dar es Salaam hub.

ATCL has 12 aircraft in its fleet – one Dash 8-Q300; five Dash 8-Q400’s; four Airbus A220-300’s and two Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners.

The airline expects to take delivery of five more aircraft before the end of the year. They are one Dash 8 Q400; two Boeing 737-9 MAX’s; one Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner and one Boeing 767 freighter.

ATCL currently operates intercontinental flights to India and China with the two Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners.

“We fly to India four times a week and once to China,” Mr Matindi said, noting that the reason for flying to China only once weekly was due to a limit set by the Chinese government.

“However, we have received a permit for one more frequency to China. I would like to inform the public that we will start flying twice weekly to China with effect from March 2.”