Go First crisis: P&W engines started failing right from the first deliveries in 2017, says Nusli Wadia

Nusli Wadia, chairman of Wadia Group, that owned Go First, said that Pratt & Whitney (P&W) engines started failing right up from the first deliveries in 2017 and not just once but several times. He also pegged the damage caused by the engine-maker’s alleged faulty engines to Go First at more than Rs 10,000 crore. 

Wadia told financial daily Economic Times in an interview that P&W’s inaction and contractual defaults “irreparably financially damaged Go First” that put several thousand employees as well as a national asset that served millions of passengers at risk. 

He said that Go First was forced to move the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) as it was left with no options. "Unfortunately, due to several legal interventions, despite Go First being poised for revival, its revival could not take place," he said.

"The Pratt & Whitney engines started to fail ab initio, right from the earliest deliveries in 2017, not just once, but several times. Despite P&W searching for solutions to remedy the defects, they were unable to succeed," Wadia said.

The Wadia Group chairman said that P&W had persuaded Go First (then Go Air) to opt for their new engines which, they said, would be reliable and perform up to 15,000 hours before requiring maintenance. 

"Unfortunately, the engines failed right from the first deliveries," Wadia told the daily, adding that their CEO kept apologising right from 2017 about the failure of their engines. He acknowledged that Pratt initially repaired the engines free of cost and provided compensation for grounded planes. Wadia said that after the COVID-19 pandemic, Pratt, however, started demanding payment for the repair of the failed engines despite the contract stating that they were liable to fix the engines for free and replace them within 48 hours.

Nusli Wadia said the IPO was initially well received but the grounding of a substantial portion of the fleet led to investors withdrawing interest and eventually the abandonment of the IPO.

"In order to sustain the airline operating at 50% with 100% costs, the promoters invested Rs 3,200 crore," Wadia told the daily.

Wadia also said that P&W’s claim that Go First’s years-long failure to pay for maintenance and lease charges led to the suspension of services was false. Go First met all the obligations responsibly but refused to accept P&W’s financial demands for repairs of its failed engines, said Wadia. 

In May, when Go First approached NCLT, almost 65 per cent of its aircraft had been grounded. Lessors wanted their planes back and wrote to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for deregistration of the planes.

Also read: SpiceJet to raise Rs 2,241 crore in two tranches to acquire Go First: Report

Also read: Go First acquisition: SpiceJet says keen on buying bankrupt airline, stock surges