Go First Crisis: SIAC directs Pratt & Whitney to deliver 5 engines to Go First every month

Sources who reviewed the order said the Singapore International Court of Arbitration (SIAC) on Wednesday directed US engine maker Pratt & Whitney to deliver five engines per month between August and December 2023 to the airline Go First.

“Pratt & Whitney respects the provisional arbitration award and will abide by the order until otherwise modified. We look forward to vigorously defending ourselves during the entitlement proceedings where business and legal issues will be identified and resolved,” a Pratt & Whitney spokesperson told Business Standard.

“SIAC said they (Pratt and Whitney) would have to comply and deliver 5 engines a month. It just ended and the engines will start flowing now with immediate effect,” said a person familiar with the matter.

The SIAC request added that engines must be sent immediately between August 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023, after any engine becomes available.

This replaces an earlier order that required Pratt & Whitney to send ‘without delay’ 10 serviceable spare engines on lease by April 27 and an additional 10 on lease per month through December 2023.

However, in May, Go First said Pratt & Whitney was unable to send any serviceable spare engines.

The latest order adds that beginning in October 2023, the parties (Go First and Pratt & Whitney) must provide the court with quarterly updates on the progress of settlement proceedings along with details about compliance with the order and any other relevant circumstances.

The airline which used to operate around 200 daily flights ceased operations on May 3 this year as it had to ground nearly 50 percent of its fleet due to engine problems.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation, the aviation regulator, on Tuesday began a “special audit” of Go First’s facilities on safety and readiness to resume operations of the company.

“The (special audit) was in Delhi and Bangalore today. It’s over today. They (DGCA) will take some time to schedule the order and then we’ll find out (about it). The DGCA will officially announce if there is a ‘traffic light’,” a person familiar with the matter said. .