“If you find yourself in a position like this, you must cover your arse!”
In 2014, Etihad Airways acquired 5 B777-200LR from Air India for long-range routes to and from America. I was tasked with the delivery of these aircraft, which were based in Mumbai. I sent a team to check the technical records and perform an inspection of each aircraft, none of which were in operation at the time. After the first few days of the team checking both records and aircraft, several issues were identified. My immediate boss said that I needed to go to Mumbai to oversee this personally. I was not keen on doing this assignment in Mumbai as I had been to Delhi before for another aircraft delivery and did not enjoy the experience! My boss contacted the head of technical who also agreed that I needed to be there in person. Although they insisted, travelling to India was not as easy as they thought due to the bureaucracy of the Indian authorities. This also meant that my passport and supporting documents had to be taken to the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi for clearance and a working visa, this process took two weeks!
Eventually and reluctantly, I flew to Mumbai. After clearing the airport, I got to my hotel and got a good rest before heading to the Air India facility. When I arrived the next day and reached the hangar, I could not believe that we were buying these planes. The entire hangar and tarmac outside looked more like a scrapyard, planes were in all kinds of states of disrepair, parts hanging off them, spares and engines just lying everywhere gathering rust and dust in the oppressive heat. This was not a good start!
I met the Etihad team who had been working on the aircraft as well as the Air India team who were supporting the delivery. We put a plan together to clear the aircraft ready for its demonstration flight which was due a week from now. I arranged for an Etihad pilot to be flown to Mumbai, whose role was to monitor the flight from the flight deck. On completion of the demonstration flight, I asked the Etihad pilot if there were any major defects or anything that required another flight.
“No David”, he said confidently, “it was an excellent airplane, and I’ll give you my full report tomorrow!”
I could not believe the report I was sent, all it told me was how great the travel and accommodation arrangements were for the pilot to get to and from Mumbai. There was nothing in the report about the flight itself or how the aircraft was handled! I called the pilot up immediately and told him I needed to see him. When we met, he told me verbally that the plane handled well but there were some issues during the flight, which he did not elaborate on. This was getting more suspicious by the minute, and I had a gut feeling that there was some political manoeuvring taking place with these aircraft that I was not privy to! But I did my job and delivered all 5 aircraft in 2014 as requested, my signature however does not appear on any documents for these aircraft as I was not going to sign my name to an aircraft I didn’t believe was fully up to spec.
The whole process that involved myself and my team was carried out to the highest level of professionalism. Any issues that we identified were recorded and passed on to senior management and they made the final decision to acquire the aircraft and fly it to Abu Dhabi. Once there, the propulsion section of Etihad arranged for borescopes to be carried out. Upon completion they had to apply to GE for approval for a two-cycle operation. This allowed Etihad to fly the aircraft to Amsterdam for painting into their livery. On returning to Abu Dhabi, a full maintenance check was carried and both engines were immediately sent for overhaul, this was the case with all 5 aircraft! The aircraft was eventually sold to a leasing company in 2018 after only 4 years of service. I don’t know what happened to four of them, but I know for certain that one was sold to an Aviation spares company based in West Sussex, UK and the whole plane was scrapped for parts.
In all the projects I have been involved in, there has always been pressure to deliver the aircraft on time. When I am involved in the delivery it is usually always on time and normally fully ready for operation. Sometimes, however, additional pressure is brought to bear to shorten the time frame, and this is where poor decisions can be made by senior management. If you find yourself in a position like this, you must cover your arse! If you are being put under pressure by senior management or anyone, else make sure you get them to take full responsibility in writing, such as an email. Then at least you are in the clear about the decision that they have made!
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