Finnair to Return Its Grounded A321 Fleet to Service After Seat Cover Cleaning Mixup

This is a very unique story. Something I’ve certainly never come across before in many years of working in and closely observing the aviation industry. Finnair had to ground, that’s right ground, 8 of its aircraft for having washed the seat covers the wrong way. Here’s what the story is all about.

Finnair’s A321 Grounding – The Unexpected Cause

Even the most simple of items on a plane is more complex than you might expect. Something as simple as a seat cover can be a safety issue if not treated according to standard procedures and manufacturer specifications.

Everything inside a modern airliner is made in fire retardant material. Therefore slowing down any fire from spreading across the cabin in the unlikely event of one breaking out.

However, since October 13th 2025 Finnair has had to ground 8 of its 15 Airbus A321 aircraft due to a error in cleaning the seat covers.

How a Cleaning Procedure Led to Safety Concerns

1,700 seat covers were erroneously washed using water, which is not standard operating procedure according to the manufacturer’s instructions, and might have compromised their fire retardant characteristics. In order to not take any chances the airline took the 8 Airbus A321 out of service while waiting for new seat covers to arrive.

Fleet Impact – 70 Flights Canceled and 11,000 Passengers Affected

Those 8 Airbus A321 represent a significant chunk of Finnair’s European fleet, which is made up of 42 total aircraft. The A321, however, is the highest capacity of the lot capable of carrying up to 209 passengers on a fully loaded all economy configuration.

Taking them out of service meant 70 Finnair flights were canceled, affecting 11,000 passengers. That is a major disruption for an airline such as Finnair that focuses on serving connecting onwards traffic.

“We are deeply sorry for the inconvenience and disruption this has caused to our customers. The safe operation of our flights is the foundation of everything we do. Once we received information that the impact of washing on the fire protection of the seat covers had not been verified in the required manner, it was clear that the aircraft had to remain on the ground until the issue was resolved”

Pekka Korhonen, SVP Technical Operations at Finnair.

New Seat Covers and Gradual Return to Service

The new seat covers are finally arriving which means Finnair will gradually put these 8 Airbus A321s back into service. The first of the 8 affected planes by this unfortunate incident has already returned to service, with the remaining 7 expected to follow by the end of October.