About those loose seats on American Airlines....

[hedgehog]

Meanwhile, Robert Gless, deputy director of the Air Transport Division of the Transport Workers Union of America, dismissed the notion that the problems with loose seats were linked to labor issues as "without any basis in fact."

Seat installation work is largely carried out by outside contractors, rather than maintenance personnel employed by the airline, he said in a statement.

"Problems related to seats are less likely a labor problem, but rather a management issue related to outsourcing work to third-party facilities," he said.

American Airlines plans to increase its use of outside maintenance facilities, including in China and other overseas locations, as it seeks to exit bankruptcy, he added.


http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/03/travel/american-airlines-problem/index.html?eref=mrss_igoogle_cnn

[KaryninMiami]

1. Flying on an AA 737 on Monday- may bring along a wrench to make sure my seat doesn't fly off... NT

[leveymg]

4. Good luck trying to get that through TSA. ;-)

[KaryninMiami]

6. Wrenches are not ok with TSA? I never thought of that. May have to reconsider.

Crazy glue instead?

[liberal N proud]

2. Outsource maintenance to China?

Are they going to fly the plane to China every time it needs service?



Not safe to fly!

[SoapBox]

5. Yes...almost.

It's a quiet and dirty little secret, kept from the public, that heavy maintenance is now done outside of the United States. Lots of stuff is done in South/Central America...Delta just signed some deal in Mexico to establish a large facility. In fact, several months ago, got on an aircraft (after our flight was hours delayed due to mechanical...a U.S. carrier) that had just been ferried (empty but for pilot crew - eventually got the story from the flight attendants) into Honolulu from Singapore...it was like stepping into a brand new airplane and had been completely refurbished (inside anyway).

Regarding the AA problems...I knew that it was just a "mechanical" issue...they, like all other carriers, are in the process of ripping apart the cabin to install a "more leg room" section in coach, which requires a lot of moving almost all sets of seats.