The incorporation of the first Airbus A320neo at Austrian Airlines is obviously not going according to plan at all. The OE-LZN could not take off for technical reasons just two days after the first commercial flight, Aviation.Direct was the first and only specialist medium to report on the AOG.

Last Friday, Austrian Airlines told Aviation.Direct: “Unfortunately, the OE LZN is actually AOG due to a malfunction in the electronic engine control. Our colleagues in technology are working flat out on a solution.” In the meantime it has turned out that it is not just an electronic problem, but that there are much more serious problems. For the carrier who owns the machine only officially presented last week, it's quite annoying.

The technical operations of Austrian Airlines were supposed to be able to fix the problem. With the newcomer, the course pair OE393/394 was held on Saturday and shortly afterwards the OE-LZN was already AOG again. The same error message appeared again and since then this Airbus A320neo has been on the ground again.

However, it only seems clear that this is not just a simple electronic problem, because Austrian Airlines needs a spare part that, according to its own statements, is currently difficult to obtain. It is hoped that this can be delivered and installed on Tuesday evening or at night. If this succeeds, the OE-LZN should be used regularly again on the national holiday.

According to AUA, the required spare part is currently difficult to obtain, but it is likely that it will be delivered on Tuesday evening. In this case, the machine should be made ready for flights the next day. The AUA speaks of "teething troubles" that are now being remedied.

It is currently unclear what exactly caused the problems. However, AUA employees, on condition that they keep their identity anonymous, have said that one or the other problem should have occurred before the first commercial flight. There were also error messages before and after the painting work. These would be before first commercial flight but has been fixed.

Airbus has to improve second A320neo

Numerous defects were found on the "sister ship" OE-LZO during the so-called acceptance flight last week. When taking delivery of brand new aircraft, it is common for an experienced team of pilots and technicians to put the aircraft through its paces. Normally, a test flight is carried out – similar to taking delivery of a new car. The AUA experts found what they were looking for and immediately complained to the manufacturer Airbus. In concrete terms, this means that the aircraft manufacturer must rectify the points criticized by the pilots and technicians before handover. Only then will the OE-LZO be transferred to Vienna. A senior AUA employee assumes that acceptance and the ferry flight will be delayed by a few days.

The OE-LZO is also adopted "naked". In concrete terms, this means that the cabin is installed by the technical company in Vienna. The painting work is done in the Paintshop Bratislava. same was already at the OE-LZN the case. The A320neo numbers three and four will be handed over ready-made, including seats and livery, from the Airbus factory in spring 2023.