Jetstar holding more spare parts as half 787 fleet grounded

The budget carrier is holding more spare parts and ordering them weeks earlier amid problems that saw more than half its 787 Dreamliner fleet out of action.

Jetstar is holding more spare parts and ordering them weeks earlier, as it grapples with unplanned issues that saw more than half its 787 Dreamliner fleet out of action at the start of this month.

The low-cost Qantas Group unit grappled with bird strike, lightning strike, and damage from debris on the runway, at the same time as it undertook planned aircraft maintenance.

Fixing problems such as unplanned events such as wing flap damage is taking much longer than it did before the Covid-19 pandemic began because of ongoing supply chain and delivery disruptions.

“We are holding more spares, ordering parts weeks earlier and making sure we have as many freight options as possible,” said Jetstar chief operating officer Matt Franzi. “We are also working with manufacturers and suppliers on new spare parts markets as a result of global sanctions impacting supplies from Russia.”

Jetstar’s issues arose on the eve of the busy school holiday period, during which it expects to fly 1.7m customers across its domestic and international network.

Jetstar is holding more spare parts and ordering them weeks earlier amid a raft of problems. Picture: Dan Peled/NCA NewsWire

On Monday, Jetstar experienced a spike in cancellations, of close to 18 per cent cancellation rate, the highest in two months, which followed from a 12 per cent cancellation rate the previous day.

The airline said that spike was unrelated to the problems with its international fleet.

The spare parts issue is a problem for airlines across the world, which are now having to factor in slower time-to-delivery of spare parts on top of issues such as sickness and understaffing.

Six of the 11 Dreamliner fleet were out of action in one 24-hour period, and Mr Franzi said managing spare parts issues was something the Qantas Group was having to constantly reassess in the current environment.

“As we come out of the pandemic, we are managing our spare parts program differently as a result of limited freighter space and global supply chain challenges that are impacting many industries around the world,” Mr Franzi said.

A case in point for Jetstar was the 10-metre wing flap needed after debris flicked up and damaged the wing of a Boeing 787 dreamliner flying from Bangkok to Melbourne.

Instead of just a few days transit time, the wing flap had to be road freighted from Phoenix to Los Angeles before loading it on to a specialist air freighter designed to uplift over-size parts, increasing the time to get to Australia by about five days.

While the spare parts issue is global, Australian airlines are worse placed than many others due to being end-of-line carriers, according to Rico Merkert, professor of transport and supply chain management at the University of Sydney.

Mr Merkert said global specialised labour shortages, coupled with sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine, and Covid-related issues in China were creating a “perfect storm” for the aviation industry.

“This is a global problem and it’s a complex issue with so many angles,” Mr Merkert said. “Spare parts are often difficult to transport or hard to source. If you can’t find an air freighter and have to put these pieces on the road it can add days … and that affects customers.”

The issue for Jetstar has related to its Boeing fleet and the aircraft manufacturer said

“Supply-chain constraints continue to be a challenge for industries around the world, and aviation is no exception,” said a Boeing spokesman. “Boeing will continue to work closely with our suppliers towards greater stability in the supply chain and in support of our customers.”

Spare parts are just part of the problem for Boeing, which is also experiencing delays in deliveries of new 737 and 787. The 737 MAX only started flying again last year after being grounded following two catastrophic accidents.

Labour shortages, coupled with sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine, and Covid-19 related issues in China were creating a ‘perfect storm’ for the aviation industry. Picture: Supplied

Airbus said it has an adequate supply of spare parts to support the in-service Airbus fleet. The Toulouse-based aircraft manufacturer has a spare parts distribution centre in Singapore, which has helped Australian airlines access parts more quickly than if they needed to be sourced from the US or Europe.

Spare parts for planned Jetstar fleet maintenance has been easier to cater for, Mr Franzi said, though some issues were impacted by global sanctions against Russia. Much of Boeing and Airbus’s titanium is also sourced from Russia, but this precious metal is not currently included in global sanctions.

Virgin Australia also confirmed that sourcing spare parts has been more challenging but said it is not current experiencing any fleet outages as a result.

“Virgin Australia is not immune to the challenges being faced in logistics and global supply chain management, but we are working very closely with our partners to manage this as best as possible,” a spokeswoman said.