Designing a new product (see Chapter 5) is never easy and corporate history is full of great products that flopped—Betamax, Commodore’s Amiga computer, the Ford Edsel, and Aston Martin’s 1974 Lagonda car. For the Airbus A220 commercial jet, avoiding a similar fate seems like a constant struggle.
Here are my observations from an insider’s perspective. My first job out of college was as a “loft lines” engineer at McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing), designing the wing of the DC-10 jumbo jet, a plane that failed badly (but the wing never fell off!). From there I went to GE to work on design of the CF6-6 engine, designed to power the DC-10. The reality is that creating a jet engine is as complex as creating a new jet. Still, what is happening to the Pratt & Whitney PW1500G engines for the A220, is troubling.
The durability problems affecting A220 engines have hit this aircraft hard, forcing airlines to cancel flights and ground crews. PW1500G’s were supposed to last 20,000 flight cycles, but are being sent to the shop at 5,000. Some are being sent in before 600 cycles. About 15% of global A220s are grounded.
The A220 should be the pride and joy of the aerospace industry, writes The Wall Street Journal (Sept. 11, 2024). It is the only “clean-sheet” single-aisle plane built in recent years—the A320 and Boeing 737 designs go back to 1986 and 1966, respectively. When it entered service in 2016, it sported a lightweight airframe full of composite materials, large windows and a redesigned cockpit. It reduced fuel burn per seat by 25% and became beloved by pilots and passengers alike.
But now, cancellations are outpacing orders. EgyptAir, which flies in a hot and dusty region harsh on aircraft, got rid of its 12 A220s earlier this year. Cyprus Airways added two brand-new A220s, only to see both of them affected by engine troubles. Its CEO said the jet shouldn’t be sold until the problems are solved.
Scarcity of parts and lengthy repair-shop waiting lists mean that there is no quick fix. Some of the overhauls to the A220’s engines are particularly lengthy: A whole-new combustor design won’t be rolled out until 2027. And recent experience has taught airlines to distrust timelines. The headache for Airbus is that it needs to reach and sustain a production rate of 14 A220s a month in order to break even on them, up from 6 currently.
Classroom discussion questions:
- Which other commercial jets have suffered major setbacks in the past decades?
- In what ways is this an OM issue?