As we approach the second anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic, which originated from China, the spread of its newer and more virulent Delta variant has further delayed the recovery of the global aviation sector. As a result, India’s airlines are faced with a delayed recovery in domestic air travel and a continued collapse of international air travel, which has meant that large numbers of aircraft will continue to remain in long term storage.
At the pandemic’s peak in mid-2020, 650 commercial aircraft were parked at 22 airports across India. According to aviation consultancy CAPA India, in FY 2021, Indian airlines operated an estimated 700 aircraft, out of which around 300-350 aircraft were surplus to their requirements. These included 200-250 aircraft operating on domestic sectors and 100 aircraft operating on international routes. CAPA India has forecast that 250-300 aircraft will remain grounded in H1FY22.
Ground effect
A major challenge for Indian carriers is the large number of aircraft they operate on lease, which must be maintained to stringent standards prescribed by the lessors. According to various estimates, more than 80% of the aircraft operated by Indian carriers are on lease compared with the global average of 41%. Some of the major lessors to Indian airlines include Avolon, Aircastle, BOC Aviation, DAE Capital, CDB Aviation and ALAFCO.
The airline bears the entire risk of loss, theft, damage, and destruction throughout the lease term.
Pulak Sen, Founder Secretary General, MRO Association of India, told Mobility Outlook, “The lessee is responsible for the maintenance and storage, if required, of the aircraft until the termination of the lease. The aircraft must be maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s maintenance programme, the rules and regulations of the aviation authority, the manufacturer’s type design and following any other regulations or requirements necessary to maintain a valid certificate of airworthiness for the aircraft at all times,”
Indian carriers could never have imagined that large portions of their aircraft fleet would remain grounded for close to two years, with the potential to go on even longer. This had an immediate impact starting with the first spate of aircraft groundings immediately after the pandemic struck in 2020, as storage procedures (and costs) vary based on how long airlines initially estimated the storage period to be. If the airline operator originally assumed that the aircraft would be stored for 60 days but later extended to 180 days or beyond, a substantially higher number of checks and inspections would be required than initially envisaged to tackle issues related to corrosion, leaks, unreliable parts or systems.
Flight restoration
The preservation and restoration process of commercial jetliners and regional transport aircraft is a complex process. The increased complexity of the hardware and software on modern airplanes demands careful attention to protect and restore the airplane after parking.
Operator experience worldwide has shown that airplanes in regular service exhibit higher dispatch reliability and fewer maintenance problems than those used sporadically, such as infrequent charter flights or parked airplanes. This is because experienced flight crew operate the aircraft on regular service and monitor the performance while maintenance personnel undertake routine inspection, preventative maintenance and repairs needed to meet regulatory standards.
An aircraft can be damaged by heat, humidity, cold, ice, snow, rain, lightning, hail, wind, sandstorms if it is incorrectly protected against the elements. Sensitive pitot probes, static ports, total air temperature probes and angle-of-attack sensors must also be protected from insects and damage or debris contamination. There have been cases of insects contaminating pitot systems even though covers are in place during storage.
Parking an aircraft for over 60 days falls under long-term storage guidelines. Aircraft maintenance manuals detail the standard processes tailored to the aircraft and approved by local authorities as per the Approved Maintenance Programme (AMP). Whoever is responsible for the aircraft’s airworthiness will need to ensure the storage processes stated in the manuals are being carried out to maintain the airworthiness of the aircraft.
“Overall, it is a fairly extensive process, with each check requiring detailed documentation and creation of a long paper trail. Lessors must be informed in writing about all scheduled or unscheduled maintenance and storage of aircraft. There are specific clauses in an aircraft lease agreement which cover maintenance of aircraft, and airlines must comply with these at all times,” said Sen.
To ensure the airworthiness of an aircraft that has been parked and then restored to in-service condition, extensive, lengthy and expensive procedures have been established by regulators and aircraft OEMs, which will be an additional burden on Indian airlines already saddled with high levels of debt.