Photo: Shutterstock The International Air Transport Association (IATA), published a new study in collaboration with the consulting firm Emerton, indicating an ongoing crisis in the maintenance of Pratt & Whitney's latest generation aircraft engines.
According to the study published on June 24, 2026, engine reliability issues, spare parts shortages, limited availability of replacement engines, and limited maintenance capacity are creating significant burdens on airlines. The result is reduced engine uptime, increased maintenance visits, and difficulty in planning ongoing fleet operations.
The most notable figure concerns the engine manufacturer's GTF engines. In March 2025, the number of aircraft grounded due to waiting for spare parts, replacement engines or maintenance reached 648 aircraft, about 28% of the entire fleet of aircraft equipped with these engines. Many airlines have been forced to extend leases of older aircraft, postpone retirements of aircraft and even lease additional aircraft to cope with the shortage.
According to IATA, the challenge is expected to worsen as the world’s narrow-body aircraft fleet continues to grow. In 2024, about 2,000 new engines were delivered, but between 2030 and 2040, deliveries are expected to reach about 3,700 engines per year. Accordingly, the number of annual maintenance visits for LEAP engines is expected to jump from about 600-800 today to more than 5,000 by 2040.
IATA Director General Willie Walsh called for increased competition in the maintenance market, expanded repair options, improved access to spare parts and technical information, and the removal of barriers to independent maintenance providers.
He said that without broad cooperation between aircraft and engine manufacturers, maintenance companies, and airlines, operational disruptions are expected to continue and even expand to hundreds of aircraft per year in the coming years.
As a reminder, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency recently issued an emergency directive ordering Airbus A380 wing mid-spar inspections after cracks were discovered, with urgent checks required across 16 aircraft worldwide.