TATA-SIA Airline's First A320 Gets Ready

TATA-SIA's first Airbus A320-232SL (SL for sharklets) was spotted flying for the first time at Toulouse, France, on 10 July 2014. It flew under the test registration F-WWDT and carried manufacturer serial number 6223.

The aircraft was to be registered VT-TTB. Its next stop was Hamburg, where the cabin would be fitted to TATA-SIA's specification. It was expected in Delhi by 15 August, and no later than 20 August.

Permits and timing

The airline received its no objection certificate (NOC) from the ministry on 2 April 2014 and applied for an air operator permit (AOP) on 22 April 2014. On 9 July 2014, after inviting and reviewing public objections and suggestions, the DGCA decided to consider the application.

Going by the pace of clearances, the AOP looked likely by the first half of September. The Delhi High Court had just adjourned to 12 September the petitions filed by the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) and Subramanian Swamy against TATA-SIA and AirAsia India, so TATA-SIA could have its AOP before that hearing.

With the AOP in hand, the airline might open sales in September and start flying by late September or early October, provided the DGCA cleared its schedules on time.

Choice of power

The Tatas held a stake in both TATA-SIA and AirAsia India, but the full service airline chose the IAE V2527-A5 engine, not the CFM56-5B6 flown by AirAsia. The IAE engine was the same type IndiGo used on its A320s. It had higher thrust but a lower bypass ratio than the CFM56-5B6, which made it noisier.

• Take off thrust: CFM56-5B6 104.5 kN, IAE V2527-A5 110.3 kN.
• Bypass ratio: CFM56-5B6 5.9:1, IAE V2527-A5 4.8:1.
• Noise, based on FAA data: CFM56-5B6 lower, IAE V2527-A5 baseline.

IAE was formed by Pratt and Whitney, Rolls Royce, MTU Aero Engines and Japanese Aero Engine Corporation. Pratt and Whitney, the engine unit of United Technologies Corporation, became the majority holder when it bought out Rolls Royce's stake in October 2011.

TATA-SIA's choice was a natural one. Singapore Airlines flew Boeing 777s, A380s and A330s, all with Rolls Royce engines. Its subsidiary SilkAir flew A320s and A319s with IAE engines. Tigerair, in which Singapore Airlines had a stake, also flew IAE powered A320s and A319s.

AirAsia's fleet was mostly A320-216s, powered by the CFM56-5B6. Amit Singh, Director Flight Operations at AirAsia India, said the lower thrust of the 5B6 brought maintenance savings. Worldwide, CFM engines had a reputation for reliability and toughness, reportedly better than IAE's, and were reported to give better economics on the A320 and A319.

CFM held more than 55 percent of the classic engine market on the A320, but a smaller share in Asia Pacific. In India at the time, 93 A320 family aircraft were IAE powered and 66 were CFM powered. Of the 93 IAE aircraft, 78 belonged to IndiGo.

Edit: thrust ratings were changed to show take off thrust as published by EASA.