Delta Air Lines Inc. is removing seats from 179 jets to make things less cramped — for flight attendants, not the passengers.
The removal of two or three seats, depending on the aircraft model, reverses some of the carrier’s seat additions of recent years. The action provides more space in the galleys, spokesman Michael Thomas said.
“This is an investment to give our flight attendants the room that they asked for, and in turn so they can provide better customer service,” he said.
The seat reductions are a bit unusual in an industry that has tried to stuff more passengers on board in recent years, in part by introducing sleeker “slimline” seating. Those seats use less padding than traditional models and are shaped differently, letting airlines pack more people in the cabin with little or no change to the spacing between rows.
Three rear seats will be taken out of 69 Airbus Group SE A320 jets currently being flown and from 45 A321s on order, Delta said. The carrier also will nix two apiece in its fleet of 65 McDonnell Douglas MD-90s, which don’t have rear galleys, to provide more storage space, Thomas said.
Delta earlier had boosted seat counts on aircraft including the MD-90 and the A320, with the latter jet also receiving “space-saving galleys,” according to a January 2014 statement.
Southwest Airlines Co., American Airlines Group Inc. and United Continental Holdings Inc. also have added slimline seats in economy class. Boeing Co. last year announced it would build a new variant of its narrow-body 737 Max 8 aircraft with 11 more seats than the model under development.
Bloomberg Business
SN-3126 aborts take-off after engine failure
A Brussels Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration OO-SNC performing flight SN-3126 from Bologna (Italy) to Brussels (Belgium), was accelerating for takeoff from Bologna’s runway 12 when the crew rejected takeoff at low speed after the right hand engine (CFM56) emitted a loud bang. The aircraft slowed safely, vacated the runway about 500 meters/1650 feet down the runway and returned to the apron.
The flight was cancelled.
A passenger tweeted for help stating his flight of Sep 5th had been cancelled, the rebooked flight SN-3126 was cancelled, too, and the passenger is still in Bologna on Sep 7th.
Another passenger reported the captain announced an engine failure.
On Sep 12th 2015 The Aviation Herald received information, that the right hand engine stalled while accelerating through about 70% N1. The engine needed to be replaced due to turbine damage. Following the engine change the aircraft ferried back to Brussels on Sep 9th and resumed service on Sep 10th.
The Aviation Herald
LX-2027 has “pungent smell” on the Flight Deck
A Swiss Global Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration HB-IJJ performing flight LX-2027 from Madrid,SP (Spain) to Zurich (Switzerland), was enroute when the crew donned their oxygen masks reporting a pungent smell in the cockpit. The crew subsequently advised that no assistance was needed, removed the oxygen masks and continued to Zurich for a safe landing on runway 14.
The occurrence aircraft remained on the ground in Zurich for about 37 hours before resuming service in the morning of Aug 27th.
The Aviation Herald