Boeing 787 Dreamliner planes equipped with a batch of potentially faulty Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc engines face restrictions on how far they can fly following a ruling by the US FAA. The measure, which Boeing has said affects about a quarter of in-service 787s, restricts the planes from operating more than 140 minutes from a diversionary airport, down from 330 minutes currently, the FAA said in a post in the Federal Register on Monday. The move comes after the European Aviation Safety Agency last week ordered additional maintenance checks on Trent 1000 “package C” engines after it was found that durability issues afflicting blades were worse than first thought. About 350 turbines will be affected, according to London-based Rolls. “The directives mandate action that Boeing and Rolls-Royce previously recommended to the fleet, including additional inspections of the intermediate pressure compressor blade at certain cycles and operational changes,” Boeing said. “The exact impact is dependent on how airlines choose to operate the airplane.”<br/>
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FItalian seat manufacturer Aviointeriors has come up with a design that allows passengers to stretch their legs as much as they want when they travel without any extra cost. The catch? The seats are so far upright that they'll be pretty much standing up. Unveiled at the Aircraft Interiors Expo 2018 in Hamburg, the SkyRider 2.0 aims to help airlines squeeze in more passengers by allowing an "ultra-high density" and reducing the space between rows. It's a new and improved version of a design the manufacturer revealed in 2010 but failed to get off the ground. The original Skyrider, which was was not approved by the US FAA, was designed in the style of a horse saddle. Aviointeriors compared the seating position to that of a horseback rider, pointing out that cowboys can sit on saddles for hours without feeling uncomfortable. The revised seats have extra padding, as well as poles to connect each row from the ceiling to the cabin floor. According to Aviointeriors, the SkyRider 2.0 "ensures an increased upright passenger position, allowing installation of the seat at a reduced pitch, while maintaining an adequate comfort." The innovative seat is yet to be snapped up by an airline.<br/>