Logistics challenges of saving Air India’s diverted 777 in Russia

Technical issues are a common occurrence and diversions happen every day for a variety of reasons. However, diverting an aircraft to a location where sourcing replacement parts would violate multiple forms of sanctions complicates matters immensely. For instance, when a Norwegian 737-8 MAX diverted to Shiraz, Iran in December 2018, the aircraft sat on the ground in Iran for 70 days. Much of that time was spent arranging an export license for a CFM LEAP1-B engine for the stricken aircraft.

If the problem with the General Electric GE90-115B engine on Air India’s 777 requires replacing the entire engine, the situation becomes even more complicated. The GE90 is the largest in service aircraft engine in the world, with a fan diameter of 3.3 metres (128 inches). Transporting a GE90 requires an equally large aircraft, most often the Antonov An-124.

The problem is that there are only a few operators of the Antonov An-124. Antonov Airlines operates a handful of An-124s, but as a Ukrainian airline they certainly won’t be flying to Russia. Maximus Air Cargo and their single An-124 also fall into that category.

Russian cargo carrier Volga-Dnepr Airlines has a large fleet of An-124s, though only one has flown since March. Depending on where a replacement engine could be found, a Volga-Dnepr aircraft might not be able to pick it up due to restrictions on Russian aircraft operating in certain countries.

GE90 engines can be transported in other aircraft, such as a Boeing 747, if they are partially disassembled, but this introduces even further complications. Sourcing an aircraft able to carry the engine and operate to Russia remains a challenge and disassembling the engine for transport introduces the need to reassemble the engine in the field. On the receiving end, Sokol Airport does not regularly host 777 heavy maintenance. Replacing a GE90 engine on a 777 in non-standard conditions is a monumental undertaking requiring specialized tooling alongside the engine itself. When a Swiss 777 diverted to Iqaluit in 2017, it took a week—without any export restrictions to worry about—to perform the engine change.