Fire safety verification failure forces Finnish carrier to pull eight jets from service. Manufacturer admits washing impact on seat covers was never properly tested.
Finnair grounded eight Airbus A321 aircraft and canceled around 70 flights after discovering fire safety concerns with approximately 1,700 seat covers, disrupting travel plans for roughly 11,000 passengers.
The Finnish flag carrier announced Oct. 22 that the original seat cover manufacturer had informed the airline that the “impact of washing on the fire protection of the seat covers had not been verified in the required manner.”
Finnair immediately pulled the affected aircraft from service. The airline was first alerted to the problem on Oct. 13 and expects all eight A321s back in operation by the end of the month. One aircraft has already returned to service.
“We are deeply sorry for the inconvenience and disruption this has caused our customers,” Pekka Korhonen, senior vice president of technical operations at Finnair, said. “The safe operation of our flights is the foundation of everything we do. Once we received information that the impact of washing on the fire protection of the seat covers had not been verified in the required manner, it was clear that the aircraft had to remain on the ground until the issue was resolved.”
The airline said a long-standing partner manufactured the affected seat covers based on specifications from the original seat manufacturer.
“The covers have been washed in accordance with the information received from the original seat manufacturer,” a Finnair spokesperson said. “Seats are typically washed every two years. Washing is a standard cleaning method for aircraft seats and is used across the rest of Finnair’s fleet.”
Finnair is now installing new seat covers from multiple suppliers to return the grounded aircraft to service. The airline has leased two aircraft with crews to maintain operations on part of its network during the disruption.
Key Takeaways
- Finnair grounded eight Airbus A321s after discovering that fire protection standards for 1,700 seat covers were never properly verified after washing procedures.
- The carrier canceled 70 flights, affecting 11,000 passengers, after being alerted Oct. 13 to the safety issue.
- New seat covers from multiple suppliers are being installed, with all aircraft expected back in service by month’s end.
- Finnair leased two replacement aircraft with crews to maintain network operations during the fleet disruption.
