Now that Boeing is there...how can Airbus be left behind!
Airbus changes order platform for unauthorized design changes
Feb. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Airbus SAS has been banned since September by European aerospace safety authorities from delivering commercial aircraft with seats made by a Japanese contractor embroiled in a probe of unauthorized design changes.
The Cologne-based European Aviation Safety Agency withdrew its production organization approval for Koito Industries Ltd. last year, saying the Yokohama-based company was no longer a trustworthy manufacturer and wasn't sharing enough information with European clients, EASA spokesman Daniel Holtgen said.
"Our withdrawal of the POA is what I would describe as an emergency measure," Holtgen said today in a telephone interview. EASA's directive applies to all Airbus planes, even if they are flown outside Europe, Holtgen said.
Koito will have to fix about 150,000 passenger seats in some 1,000 commercial airliners owned by 32 airlines after the company falsified test results and made unauthorized design changes, Japan's transport ministry said today.
Neither EASA nor U.S. Federal Aviation Administration have issued rulings directing airlines to take action. Japan's transport ministry doesn't have authority to order carriers in the U.S. or Europe to make changes to existing planes without airworthiness authorities in those regions backing up the order.
Working with Japan
The FAA is aware of the issue and is working closely with the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau to determine any impact on the U.S. fleet, spokeswoman Laura Brown said in an e-mail.
Airbus said five aircraft set to be handed over have been affected by the EASA directive. Four are awaiting seats from manufacturers other than Koito. Singapore Airlines Ltd., which has an A380 held up, is waiting for resolution of the issue and hasn't sought seats from other makers, the airline said.
Airbus informed customers last year whose delivery schedules were directly affected by the ban, and the Toulouse, France-based company is working with the carriers to find alternative solutions, spokesman Stefan Schaffrath said.
Airline fleets worldwide include 130 Airbus aircraft with Koito seats, equal to just more than 2 percent of the manufacturer's entire fleet, according to the company.
"We're working very closely with the JCAB and the FAA and our customers to make sure that seats are fully compliant to JCAB and FAA regulations," said Beverly Holland, a spokeswoman for manufacturing and quality at Boeing Co. Holland said she didn't immediately have available numbers on how many Boeing planes are flying today with seats furnished by Koito.
Neither Airbus nor Boeing released names of airlines that fly with Koito seats or that have suffered delays. All Nippon Airways Co. was forced to push back introduction of new Boeing 777 aircraft on its Narita-New York route because of the Koito.
Japan's transport ministry gave an oral warning to Koito last year after Japan Airlines Corp. received seats covered in a material that wasn't certified by the authorities. Seat material is important to help prevent the spread of fires in aircraft.
EASA said in a statement yesterday that it is "concerned about irregularities" at Koito, and that it is evaluating evidence from the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau.
Source: http://www.businessweek.com