American Airlines Faces Boeing Fines Over Delayed Dreamliner Seats
Photo Credit: American Airlines filed a lawsuit against its long-time seat vendor Zodiac Seats of Texas. Pictured are Zodiac seats on a Delta 737-800 aircraft in 2007. Wikipedia / Cweyer
Skift Take
Boeing has its own production schedule to meet and American’s issues with seat-manufacturer Zodiac are not really Boeing’s problem.
One of the reasons American Airlines filed a lawsuit against its aircraft-seat vendor Zodiac Seats is that the airline is getting squeezed by Boeing and could face substantial penalties for delayed aircraft deliveries caused by Zodiac's ongoing and tardy seat-structure shipments.
As detailed in American's complaint, obtained by Skift and embedded below, these potential fines of $5,000 per day and up to 25 percent of the cost of a shipset, or the items sent for installation in the cabin, drove American to cancel orders and deliveries and take legal action against its long-time seat supplier, based in Gainesville, Texas. American is seeking to recoup "all contractual damages" from Zodiac Seats, the lawsuit states.
“Zodiac's untimely deliveries may also prove to be the sole cause of late fees that may be imposed by an airframe manufacturer upon American. American will use reasonable commercial efforts to mitigate those charges, but if such fees are imposed, American will seek rei
