There is nothing new when it comes to aircraft delivery delays. But when it comes to parts and components, engine availability in recent years has become a major issue. The CEO of United Airlines has stated that hundreds of jets around the world are grounded or stored due to this exact issue, as operators are unable to source critical parts such as engines for aircraft. Furthermore, the lack of engines does play a role, affecting aircraft manufacturing and delivery timelines.

In recent years, several factors have contributed towards weakening the supply chain within the global aviation industry. This has subsequently resulted in delays in manufacturing and delivering critical components, creating a domino effect that negatively impacts parts and aircraft availability.

Engine Availability Impacting Global Fleet

Credit: CFM International

During a meeting between industry stakeholders and leaders held in Rio de Janeiro this week, the topic of the global supply chain within aviation was a point of discussion. Reuters reported that aircraft and engine shortages were discussed. This is when United’s CEO Scott Kirby stated that between 800 and 900 aircraft around the world were grounded due to engine issues. The report also published a quote made by the CEO, regarding this matter, at another conference wherein he expressed these problems will continue for “many, many years”.

Perhaps three of the most major engine issues affecting a significant number of aircraft can be associated with Pratt & Whitney’s PW1000G GTF engines, CFM’s LEAP engines, and Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines. The reliability and availability of these engines impact the following aircraft families:

As seen in the above table, while some aircraft such as the Airbus A320neo or the Boeing 787 Dreamliners do have an alternate powerplant option, the same cannot be said for all aircraft types. However, having multiple engine types on a single fleet can add to maintenance complexity and costs, therefore, not many airlines usually do this. This means in the event of a widespread engine issue, or lack of engine availability, the only option left for an operator would be to ground parts of its fleet.

The GTF Engine Has The Biggest Impact

Credit: Pratt & Whitney

As seen above, the engines from the PW1000G engine family, manufactured by Pratt & Whitney, are certified to power three different aircraft series, including the A320neo family, which is one of the most successful narrowbody aircraft in the world. In the case of the Airbus A220 and the Embraer E2 jets, these aircraft types do not have an alternate power plant, which renders these jets inoperable in the event of engine issues or lack of availability.

But considering the growing number of A320neo operators, along with the A220 and E2 operators, the number of aircraft impacted, or that can potentially be affected, is significant. For better context, data published by Cirium, an aviation analytics company, notes that there were 835 GTF-powered aircraft around the world in storage in October 2025. This number, at the time, accounted for around 33% of all GTF-powered jets globally.

The lack of availability of operable GTF engines has resulted in some drastic actions within the industry, including cannibalizing engines from young airframes to be used to power other aircraft. The state of the engine supply chain has reached a point where the engines are worth more than the airframes themselves. This has resulted in engines being removed from over a dozen A320neo aircraft that are only a few years old, with the airframes then dismantled for parts.

Domino Effect – Slowing Aircraft Production

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One of the most commonly known facts about the industry is that an aircraft not flying is not generating revenue for the airline, while incurring costs. This concept is one of the reasons why manufacturers such as Airbus are reducing their aircraft delivery rate. The lack of engine availability. The European manufacturer’s delivery data indicates it delivered 25 fewer A320neo aircraft during the first quarter of 2026, when compared to the same period in 2025.

This is because an aircraft cannot be delivered to the customer without engines being available. Furthermore, long-term storage, wherein a manufactured airframe is kept waiting for extended durations for engine availability, could result in abnormal maintenance cycles and schedules for the customers. This is because while some aircraft components require maintenance depending on operational cycles, some components are maintained purely based on component age.

Ultimately, the industry is in a situation wherein operators do not have access to engines to fly their existing fleet, and manufacturers have to slow down their production to ensure sufficient power plants are available for new aircraft being built. Meanwhile, even though the industry requires more aircraft, existing aircraft are being dismantled to have their precious engines donated to other aircraft that require them.