Commercial aviation is wrestling with engine production and maintenance bottlenecks as its supply chain is plagued with shortages of advanced materials and critical parts. Aircraft clog manufacturers’ backlogs awaiting deliveries of next-generation engines or sit idle while their engines pile up in repair shops. As a result, older, less fuel-efficient aircraft are left in service, despite the development of newer, more efficient designs.
The current disruptions upending engine availability reflect the pressures on the industry, from steadily growing demand for air travel, newer engine platforms that are proving more difficult to maintain than anticipated, and intellectual property ownership and proprietary repair solutions causing slowdowns in both production and maintenance. Together, these forces have fundamentally changed aircraft and engine availability, creating challenges that are likely to persist beyond the current decade.
Why aviation is struggling to solve its engine shortage
Behind the industry’s engine availability challenges sits a combination of trends that are negatively reinforcing one another. Supply chain constraints hamper both production and repairs, with shortages of advanced materials, long lead times for castings and forgings, and limited supplier diversification for critical engine parts reducing resilience across the engine ecosystem.
At the same time, newer engine platforms face their own challenges. Although some reduction in early-life reliability is expected with the introduction of new engine platforms, these issues are persisting for longer than anticipated. Greater sensitivity to operating conditions and increased dependence on aerospace manufacturer-led repairs are also constraining availability. According to our 2026 MRO Survey, nearly 30% of industry participants do not expect a full recovery of the supply chain for more than three years.
Demand for maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) capacity is further shaping the engine market. A relatively small number of specialist providers still carry out most engine maintenance work, and capacity cannot be added quickly. New engine types require dedicated tooling, workforce training, and certifications by aerospace manufacturers. This leads to longer wait times and higher maintenance costs.
As demand for engine maintenance grows, the aftermarket is becoming an even more important source of value for airlines. This is strengthening the role of aerospace manufacturers and prompting them to work with a broader range of partners to increase MRO capacity.
How the aviation industry can respond to the new engine reality
As supply remains constrained and maintenance demand continues to rise, airlines, MRO providers, and aerospace manufacturers each face distinct opportunities. What was once largely an engineering concern now affects everything from fleet growth and capital allocation to network planning and long-term investment.
Airlines need a more integrated approach to engine lifecycle management
Airlines, while hit hard by the current disruption, have five main ways to respond. First, they can use AI to enhance predictive maintenance capabilities to keep engines in service for longer. Second, they can expand on-wing and near-wing repairs to further reduce pressure on the system. Third, they can incorporate the reality of engine availability from the start of the engine lifecycle planning process. Fourth, carriers can bring engine planning closer to engineering, fleet, network, and supply chain planning to better secure maintenance capacity. Finally, airlines can build greater resilience across the supply chain by working more closely with OEMs and MROs.
MROs need to expand capacity through disciplined investment and flexibility
For MRO providers, the current environment presents both opportunity and risk. Demand for engine maintenance continues to grow, but capital requirements, workforce constraints, and aerospace manufacturer approval pathways make expansion complex and uneven.
Success will depend on three priorities for MRO providers: making disciplined investment decisions by focusing on platforms with durable installed-base growth and strong long-term demand, building greater flexibility into operations to adapt quickly to different workloads and respond effectively to demand volatility, and developing closer partnerships with aerospace manufacturers and airlines, where feasible, through joint ventures.
Aerospace manufacturers need to play a decisive role in stabilizing the aviation ecosystem
Aerospace manfacturers sit at the intersection of engine design, production, and aftermarket performance, making it possible for them to play a critical role in improving engine availability. They should have three priorities in helping the industry adapt to the new engine reality. First, they must rethink product support and aftermarket strategy by balancing intellectual property protection with the industry’s growing need for maintenance capacity. Next, they must enable more flexible partnership models with airlines, MROs, and suppliers to expand maintenance capacity. Finally, they should rebalance the supply chain by investing more actively in Tier 2 and Tier 3 suppliers and, where possible, reducing dependence on single sources for critical parts.
Why the next phase of aviation depends on collaboration
The aviation industry is adapting to a new state shaped by supply chain constraints, evolving engine technologies, and sustained demand for maintenance. The engine availability challenge extends beyond airlines, MRO providers, and manufacturers to suppliers, regulators, and lessors. All have a role to play in improving capacity and returning order to the industry that has been missing since the COVID-19 pandemic.
