Seat glitch delays Singapore Airlines A380 delivery

Singapore Airlines Ltd joined the growing list of carriers reeling from design drawbacks from a Japanese supplier, prompting it to delay the introduction of its 11th Airbus SAS A380.

The glitch has also affected the airline's plan to modernise first-class cabins in Boeing Co. 777-300s, said its spokesman Nicholas Ionides in a Bloomberg report.

Ionides declined to say when the delayed A380, which was supposed to be due last month, will enter service. No flights have been disrupted, though, he added.

Singapore joined carriers including All Nippon Airways Co., Continental Airlines Inc. and Japan Airlines Corp. who suffered delays on Airbus or Boeing models or forced seat changes as supplier Koito Industries Ltd. failed to deliver either on time or according to specification.

Equipment defects have beset the airline industry with manufacturers relying on thousands of suppliers to meet safety standards and delivery schedules.

A spokesman for the Yokohama-based Koito, Yoichiro Kuroiwa, revealed an axle in a new seat design failed a safety test in Japan, thus delaying All Nippon's plan to take new planes by as much as six months. Kuroiwa declined to discuss other airlines.

"If airline seats don't meet any sort of requirement, they're illegal and have to be fixed," said Hans Weber, president of the San Diego-based Tecop International who has advised the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. "It’s black and white -- you either meet the requirement or you don't."

All Nippon spokesman Justin Massey said they are calling 5,000 passengers affected by the postponed introduction of Boeing 777 aircraft on its Narita-New York route because of delayed seats, also contracted with Koito, for the economy class.

He said the carrier took delivery without the premium-economy seats of one 777-300ER, a 365-seat long-haul jet, and two 737-800s, single-aisle planes that can hold as many as 189 passengers. A second 777 is still with Boeing in Seattle.

Negotiations are ongoing with Koito for compensation for the delivery delays and costs for installing alternative seats. The carrier has not yet decided if it will keep Koito as a supplier, according to Massey.

In similar news, two Boeing 737-800s supposed to be delivered to Continental last month were delayed because of late seats from Koito, and "several additional aircraft slated for delivery this year could also be impacted," said the Houston-based airline's spokeswoman Julie King.

Continental has nine 737-800s and two Boeing 777s scheduled for delivery this year with seats made by Koito.

Japan's Transport Ministry has already issued an oral warning against Koito last year after Japan Airlines Corp. got non-certified seat material.