Emirates Says Delta Forced a Six-Hour Delay
Jennifer Billock February 13, 2017
Emirates alleges that a dispute with Delta forced a plane to be delayed for more than six hours.
On February 2, an Emirates flight scheduled to leave Seattle for Dubai at 9 a.m. was delayed for more than six hours due to inability to get a replacement part for the plane. According to Emirates, the plane needed a $300 replacement for a minor hydraulic component. The airline requested the piece from Delta, had it installed, Emirates claims that a Delta senior manager ordered its removal from the Emirates plane. Emirates claims that the incident was discriminatory as Delta is against the expansion of Mideast airlines in the United States.
“It is sad, in our view, that any airline would deny such standard technical assistance to another carrier based on orders from headquarters that had nothing to do with maintenance or cost, but seem clearly to have been intended to inflict harm on the airline and its customers,” Emirates told Bloomberg in an e-mail.
Delta, American Airlines, and United are all currently in the midst of a dispute with Emirates, Qatar Airways, and Etihad. The Mideast carriers want to expand in the U.S., but the three U.S. carriers are against it, claiming that Middle Eastern carriers have received illegal aid payments – a claim that Middle Eastern carriers deny.
Delta told Bloomberg that the issue with the replacement part was nothing against Emirates – it was just a matter of policy. There’s an industry agreement that airlines share parts with one another, regardless of the airline, but Delta policy requires that the last of any parts in their inventory remain on hand in case a Delta flight needs it. The part Emirates needed was, according to Delta, the last in inventory.
“Having the right spare parts in the right places and in ample quantity is critical to ensuring a reliable airline operation for our customers,” Delta spokesman Michael Thomas told Bloomberg.
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