Swiss CEO Sees No End To A220 GTF Reliability Problems

ZURICH—Swiss International Air Lines expects issues with the Pratt & Whitney PW1500G (GTF) engines that power its Airbus A220-100 and -300 fleet to continue throughout the decade.

“It is indeed a situation that concerns us extremely,” Swiss CEO Jens Fehlinger told Aviation Week in Zurich on Oct. 14.

Lufthansa Group subsidiary Swiss was the launch customer and first operator of the PW1524G-powered A220-100. Nine of the 125-seat variant remain in its fleet alongside 21 larger A220-300 aircraft with 145 seats. Aviation Week Intelligence Network's FleetDiscovery database shows the Swiss A220 fleet has an average age of 7.89 years.

“Across our short-haul fleet, more than 10 aircraft are currently grounded—the majority of them due to engine issues,” Fehlinger said. “On the A220 side, we expect around 10 aircraft to be unproductive next year because of technical problems. That represents a significant operational impact, and we are working on various mitigation measures to maintain productivity ... It also looks as if we will be dealing with the issue until the end of the decade.”

Aviation Week Intelligence Network's Tracked Aircraft Utilization tool shows that the Swiss A220 fleet racked up some 6,100 flight hours in September 2019 but only around 4,600 in September 2025, representing a fall of about 25%.

Swiss also operates a fleet of 17 PW1100G-powered A320neo-family aircraft. “On the A320neo side, the situation is somewhat more relaxed, with currently three aircraft on the ground. However, we expect this number to increase to five next year ... but this is a situation where we are not satisfied at all,” Fehlinger said.

Asked if Pratt is putting too much focus on solving GTF issues on the global A320neo fleet and neglecting the A220, Fehlinger gave a diplomatic answer. “We look to both aircraft to have them up in the air, but it is a fact that we have more A220s on the ground than A320neos,” he said.

When asked if Swiss will, in the future, focus more on larger narrowbody aircraft like the A320 family, the CEO says when the A220 flies, it is a great aircraft that is efficient and economical.

“It is an aircraft analogous to our new Airbus A350, an aircraft of the next generation. But this only helps when it is flying. The A220 only does this to a limited extent today. Therefore, we must also consider how we can grow even more with the A320,” Fehlinger said.

Swiss operated the first commercial flight of the A220-100 on July 15, 2016, when the aircraft was still known as the Bombardier CS100 prior to Airbus buying the program.