Air Tanzania (TC, Dar es Salaam) will become the first production B767-300F operator in Africa when it takes delivery from Boeing of its first dedicated freighter, the ch-aviation fleets history module confirms.
ch-aviation fleets data shows the brand-new medium-body freighter, already registered as 5H-TCO (msn 67788), is currently awaiting delivery from Boeing's factory at Everett where it concluded its first successful test flight on March 19. Approached by ch-aviation, Air Tanzania Managing Director Ladislaus Matindi was unable to confirm a delivery date. Last month he said delivery was expected by the end of March.
A Boeing spokesperson could not immediately confirm the delivery date either. According to the OEM, the B767-300F is well-suited for developing new long-haul, regional, or feeder markets thanks to its intercontinental range capability and payload configuration. The aircraft benefits from advanced avionics and aerodynamics due to being constructed from a combination of light aluminium alloy and composites.
According to Matindi, Air Tanzania also expects four more passenger aircraft before the end of 2023, one DHC-8-Q400, two B737-9s, and one B737-8, improving the airline's capacity as several of its aircraft are grounded. These include three A220-300s experiencing technical problems with their Pratt & Whitney PW1524G-3 engines.
The Tanzanian flag carrier has been conferring with Air Sénégal (HC, Dakar Blaise Diagne International), whose A220s have experienced similar engine problems. The airlines met in Dar es Salaam last week and are considering joint legal action against the engine manufacturer, the East African newspaper reported. Both carriers are frustrated with delays in resolving the issue, which is affecting their bottom line.
"The PW1524G-3 engines made by Pratt & Whitney for A220-300 planes are supposed to be removed for maintenance after 5,260 landings, but due to engine design defects, they are removed before even 1,000 landings," Matindi said.
The carriers intend to take Pratt & Whitney to task for failing to fulfil its contractual responsibility to supply spare engines.
"We have been engaged in amicable negotiations with the company to fix the serious engine problems so that the planes can resume normal flight operations. But if amicable negotiations fail, we could resort to legal action," Matindi said, adding that negotiations also involve compensation for losses incurred.
A spokesperson for Pratt & Whitney earlier referred ch-aviation to the company's holding statement on the issue: "Engine availability is under pressure from a combination of engine time on-wing, particularly in certain harsh operating environments, and availability of hardware to upgrade and overhaul engines. Like many in the industry, we’re experiencing global supply chain challenges which are limiting the availability of structural castings and other parts. We’re progressing on our mitigation strategies with our supply base and expanding MRO network capacity, while continuing hardware and software upgrades to extend engine time on-wing. At the same time, we’re coordinating closely with customers on solutions to minimize operational disruption. We expect supply chain pressures to ease later this year, which will support the output of both production and MRO engines."
