Air Tanzania to reduce service over A220 Pratt & Whitney engine problems

Air Tanzania announced that it will temporarily reduce and suspend part of its operations due to the grounding of some of its A220-300 aircraft over “technical” engine issues.

“Due to the worldwide technical challenges of the PW1524G-3 engine used in the Airbus A220-300 aircraft and taking into account safety requirements, we have been following professional instructions to provide quality and safety service,” the airline said in a public statement released on November 10, 2022.

“To ensure our flights operate according to schedule, we will reduce flights and cancel some of our flights depending on the number of available flights. This decision is temporary in order to give time to the engine manufacturers to address the existing problems,” the airline continued.

The national airline said it was necessary to remove the affected aircraft from circulation to meet the demands of the manufacturers of these engines. However, it did not clarify which flights and destinations would be affected.

Multiple Air Tanzania A220-300 aircraft affected
Air Tanzania operates four Airbus A220-300s alongside one Dash 8-Q300, five Dash 8-Q400 and two Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners, the airline’s website states.

According to a report by Air Insight Group the airline is currently only operating one of its four A220s. The engine issues are not unique to the airline, the report added.

Speaking to Air Insight, Ladislaus Matindi, the CEO of Air Tanzania, said that the issues affect all operators of Pratt and Whitney’s PW1500G and the PW1900G engines. Air Tanzania was “far down” the manufacturer’s repair queue, Matindi added.

“Until the engines are in the repair shop, we cannot know exactly when we shall get relief. And because this problem is not particular to Air Tanzania but applies to all operators of the GTF, there are not even enough spare engines to keep us going as the affected engines visit the repair shop,” Matindi told Air Insight Group interview.

Based in Dar es Salaam, Air Tanzania was the launch customer of the Airbus A220 in Africa. The airline expects to add one Dash 8 Q400, two Boeing 737 MAX 9, one Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner and one Boeing 767 Freighter to its fleet before the end of 2023.