AUDIO: DREAMLINER PILOT SEATS TEND TO COME LOOSE
They’ve found another small problem with the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane – the cockpit seats tend to work their way loose. The Federal Aviation Administration is now proposing a new directive requiring airlines to replace both of the cockpit seats on all 787 aircraft currently in service. The move comes in the wake of an incident in which a pilot’s seat came loose during a landing attempt. Investigators determined that because of design flaws in the seat, similar incidents might be expected to occur on other Boeing 787 Dreamliners as well. If the proposal is approved, airlines would be required to replace the malfunctioning seats within a three-year window. A previous problem with the Dreamliner, if you remember, was that its lithium-ion batteries tended to catch catch fire mid-flight.
* Let’s look at the bright side: Unlike the batteries, at least the pilot seats didn’t catch on fire.
* Why don’t they give pilots something they’re more familiar with, like barstools?
* That was so unfair. You get a handful of commercial airline pilots flying drunk and the whole industry has to suffer.
* Don’t worry. The plane with the seat problem still landed. Oh, it landed upside down but it still landed.
* The cockpit seats come loose? How about checking the wings while you’re at it?
* I’m starting to think these designers had a few screws loose.
* Are they sure the navigator didn’t just loosen the captain’s chair to mess with him?
* The airlines would be required to replace the seats within a three-year window? Sure, what’s the rush?
CLIP: Our “Dreamliner” sounder
