Your support helps us tell the story.
From reproductive rights to climate change and big tech, The Independent is on the ground as the story unfolds. Whether investigating the finances of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word,' which sheds light on American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to analyze the facts from the messaging .
At such a critical time in American history, we need journalists on the ground. Your donation allows us to continue sending journalists to talk about both sides of the story.
Americans across the political spectrum trust The Independent. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to exclude Americans from our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to all and paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.
The spare parts shortage that has forced airline customers of British jet engine maker Rolls-Royce to ground their planes will continue, an expert has warned.
Flight cancellations are expected to rise as airlines battle a shortage of parts for the Trent 1000 engine that powers long-haul Boeing 787 Dreamliner planes, with British Airways (BA) and Virgin Atlantic some of the worst affected.
Industry experts warn that these supply chain disruptions reflect deeper challenges in aerospace manufacturing that are unlikely to be resolved quickly.
Nick Cunningham, aerospace and defense analyst at Agency Partners, said the independent that labor shortages and bottlenecks in the global supply chain could continue to affect flights for years. BA and Virgin Atlantic have already started canceling additional long-haul flights due to problems with the Trent 1000 engines fitted to their planes.
Virgin Atlantic announced today that it would suspend the launch of flights to Accra, Ghana, next summer, while the return of flights to Tel Aviv has been delayed until the end of next March.
Last month, BA similarly postponed the launch of a new route from Heathrow to Kuala Lumpur and suspended a daily flight between London Gatwick and New York, and between London Heathrow and Doha.
Virgin Atlantic acknowledged the “difficult decision” to delay these services and said its teams are “working closely with [our] Rolls-Royce partners on solutions to minimize disruption.”
In an earlier statement, BA said it had made Rolls-Royce “aware of the impact” these issues were having on its schedule and passengers and was seeking “the reassurance of a quick and reliable solution.”
Rolls-Royce said it was actively working with BA and other affected airlines to “minimize the impact” of limited spare parts availability, an issue that has affected the entire aerospace industry.
The engine maker has faced ongoing challenges in delivering Trent 1000 engines, which it claims can improve the fuel efficiency of British Airways' 787 Dreamliners by around 20 percent.
Earlier this year, Rolls-Royce announced it would invest £1 billion over the next five years to implement improvements across its Trent engine line-up, aiming to improve both fuel efficiency and durability.
Meanwhile, the company has mobilized a dedicated task force from engineering, supply chain and planning teams to address the backlog. However, limited access to parts and an overstretched maintenance system have grounded part of BA's Dreamliner fleet, forcing the airline to rely on older Boeing 777 aircraft.
With those older planes also requiring greater maintenance due to their heavy workloads, BA is left with few alternatives to ease the strain on its international schedule.
Rolls-Royce attributes these delays to ongoing supply chain issues, which Cunningham says are causing engineering solutions to take much longer than before.
He explained that these supply chain issues will likely continue to disrupt the aerospace industry for several years, as the root of the problem – a shortage of skilled workers – requires a long-term solution.
“It's a very deep and persistent problem that will take a long time to fix, because it will take a long time to train enough people, and then you have to retain them,” he said. “That begins with the training of children at the university. That gives you an idea of the time scale involved. “It's going to take years.”
He also noted that the disruptions are not limited to Rolls-Royce engines but affect almost all aspects of modern aerospace production.
“We can expect more cancellations because the industry is receiving many fewer new aircraft compared to what was expected,” he said.
This shortfall is due to delays in both aircraft production and the availability of critical engine parts, as “all modern engines have been pushed to the limits of physics,” making them more prone to problems requiring repairs. complex and specialized parts.
