United CEO says 900 jets grounded worldwide by engine crisis

United Airlines ↗2.15% CEO Scott Kirby said 800 to 900 aircraft are grounded globally because airlines can’t get enough engines or spare parts.eplaneai
Pratt & Whitney engines powering Airbus A320neo jets are the worst-hit, with roughly 3,000 units recalled for turbine defects.eplaneai
Kirby said the crisis will reshape the industry through the decade, delaying new aircraft deliveries and keeping operating costs elevated.kfgo

United CEO Says 900 Jets Grounded Globally Due to Engine Shortage

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby warned that between 800 and 900 aircraft worldwide are currently grounded because airlines cannot secure enough engines and spare parts, a crisis he said will persist for years and reshape the industry through the end of the decade.

An Unprecedented Bottleneck

Speaking at Bernstein’s 42nd Annual Strategic Decisions Conference, Kirby called the engine shortage the single largest structural constraint facing the airline industry. “There are 900 aircraft that are grounded around the world for engines right now. I don’t ever remember that many airplanes being grounded” for that reason, he said, according to reporting by journalist David Slotnick.substack

Kirby identified Pratt & Whitney’s PW1000G geared turbofan engines — which power the Airbus A320neo family, the A220, and Embraer E2 jets — as the most acute source of the problem. CFM International’s LEAP series and Rolls-Royce’s Trent engines are also experiencing reliability and availability challenges. Aircraft like the A220 and E2 lack alternative engine options, leaving operators with no choice but to ground affected planes.eplaneai

Ripple Effects Across the Industry

The shortage extends beyond parked jets. Deliveries of newer, more fuel-efficient aircraft are being delayed as engine manufacturers struggle to keep pace with demand. Kirby blamed a combination of manufacturers producing engines too slowly and those engines not lasting as long as airlines expected. “I think some of the manufacturers think this is a feature, not a bug,” he said, stopping short of alleging planned obsolescence.kfgo

The crisis is compounding other pressures on global aviation. Airlines already face elevated fuel costs tied to geopolitical instability, and the inability to bring newer, more efficient jets into service quickly enough is keeping operating expenses high.

No Quick Fix in Sight

Kirby characterized the situation as one that will define airline operations “for the balance of this decade,” calling engines “the biggest industry structural constraint”. With maintenance demands growing more complex and costly, airlines face difficult choices between grounding portions of their fleets or flying older, less efficient aircraft longer than planned. RTW Group, the parent company of Pratt & Whitney, has acknowledged the recall of roughly 3,000 PW1000G engines in the A320neo family for inspection due to a manufacturing defect that could cause cracking in high-pressure turbine components.youtube

For passengers, the grounded jets mean constrained capacity at a time when global travel demand remains strong — a dynamic unlikely to ease soon.