Oct 5 (Reuters) - American Airlines said on Friday it had
repaired seat locks on 42 of 48 Boeing 757 jets after some seats
came loose during flights this week.
The AMR unit, which filed for bankruptcy
protection last year, said all 48 of its 757 jets that were to
get the seat adjustments would be back in service by Saturday.
The carrier had canceled 94 flights over Thursday and Friday
to improve the locking mechanisms used to secure seats to
aircraft floors.
"We have identified the issue and our maintenance teams are
securing an FAA (Federal Aviation Administration)-approved
locking mechanism to make sure no seat can be dislodged,"
American spokeswoman Andrea Huguely said in a statement.
In recent days, three separate incidents occurred in which
seats on American Airlines flights came unbolted from the floor,
prompting an investigation by the FAA and jet inspections.
American said an internal probe showed that improperly installed
clamps had caused seats to loosen in six aircraft.
Fort Worth, Texas-based American Airlines has just over 100
757 planes, but only 48 use the seat model that has caused
problems.
American Airlines and its pilots union resumed contract
talks on Wednesday, but other problems continued at the bankrupt
carrier this week.
A cockpit warning light caused an American flight to return
to an airport shortly after takeoff on Tuesday, while a court
said a union-organizing drive at the airline could go forward
and flight delays brought more customer complaints.
