Rolls-Royce engines in Virgin’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets are faulty
All 15 of the aircraft, using Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 turbines, have been grounded, forcing Virgin to call on its partner Delta and lease extra planes
London — All 15 Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets operated by Virgin Atlantic Airways are affected by faults with Rolls-Royce Holdings engines that power the wide-body planes, according to the carrier. Grounding the Trent 1000 turbines for fixes has been "seriously disruptive", forcing Virgin to find a number of workarounds, including calling on partner Delta Air Lines and leasing extra aircraft, Shai Weiss, the UK company’s chief financial officer, said in an interview in London. Durability issues with components used in the Dreamliner engine and the Trent 900 that powers Airbus SE’s A380 super-jumbo cost Rolls-Royce £227m ($314m) in charges last year and wiped £170m from cash flow, the London-based manufacturer said Wednesday. The cash impact could double this year as maintenance activity peaks, and the re-design of problem parts won’t be fully incorporated in the 787 fleet until 2022, Rolls-Royce said. It estimated in August that as many as 500 Trent 1000s — which compete with General E...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.