SWISS Grounds Airbus A220-100s

SWISS is grounding its fleet of Airbus A220-100 aircraft in an unprecedented shift of strategy amid ongoing engine woes.

The decision will see the carrier ground all nine of its current A220-100 jets for almost two years as the airline battles ongoing Pratt & Whitney GTF issues.

Confirmed by Dennis Weber, the airline’s Chief Financial Officer, during a recent quarterly earnings call, the decision, while tough, is vital for the company to power through its struggles and improve the fleet.

What grounding the A220-100s will do for the business is improve the availability of the A220-300 fleet, the largest model in the program and also affected by the GTF woes.

Moving forward, engines removed from the grounded -100 model will be used to support the -300, which has 21 jets delivered, making it a higher-capacity option better suited across the network.

SWISS has long broadcast its affection for the -300 over the smaller -100, with the aircraft not only more cost-efficient on its day-to-day network but also far better suited to the network requirements.

In July, the airline spoke in an exclusive interview with AviationWeek, discussing the thought process behind its current A220-100 operations and hinting at a possible retirement as it weighed the structure of its operations.

In the interview, the airline’s head of aircraft assessment management said that while both aircraft variants were flown for specific reasons, the -300 was certainly more integral and beneficial. Most notably, the A220-100 was chosen for its ability to fly into London City with a steeper approach.

Now that the -100s are being grounded, Helvetic Airways, a partner of SWISS, will take over, as SWISS grounds its A220-100s, which have a specific certification that allows this model to arrive.

The good news from this move is that SWISS is not forecasting any overall reduction in operational capacity on its London City services. Across the network, there should be benefits as long-grounded A220-300s can finally return to service.

Airbus A220 Problems For Airlines

SWISS’ decision to ground its A220-100 fleet is a telltale sign of the impact across the broader regional jet market.

A220 groundings are continuing, with available data showing that, as of mid-October, 79 aircraft were out of service, representing over 20% of the global fleet at just under 370 jets.

The result of the Pratt & Whitney GTF crisis isn’t just felt on the Airbus A220 fleet, but also on the A320 family, including Brazilian planemaker Embraer’s E2 series.

A large portion, therefore, of aircraft remain grounded because the engines intended to power these planes have either been stripped and sit in hangars or the required maintenance parts cannot be obtained on time.

For airlines, this is frustrating, especially given that aircraft with Pratt & Whitney GTF engines are, on paper, incredibly efficient, flexible, agile and well-suited to a wide array of routes. Still, it’s their reliability that raises concerns.

SWISS only commented in mid-October on the deteriorating situation involving the A20 fleet, believing that the persistent pain it had already been feeling for years was not going to end anytime soon.

Instead, the airline believed groundings would continue until the end of the decade at best, something other companies are also expected to experience, which is bad news for regional jet operators who are not able to catch a break.

Each airline’s response to the challenges of this regional jet has been different; some have turned to the leasing market to secure short-term capacity, whereas others have been forced to make more radical decisions.

In the case of SWISS grounding its A220-100s on a long-term basis, this is one of the stronger decisions; however, Air Austral would be another, which is also currently evaluating life without the regional jet full stop, as they feel the reliability has been flawed for too long.