BERLIN (Reuters) - Loss-making German airline Air Berlin (>> Air Berlin Plc) will invest hundreds of millions of euros in new seats as part of a turnaround programme, a magazine reported on Friday citing an executive at the carrier.

The new slimline seats - to be made by German aircraft seating maker Recaro - will be installed on short and medium-haul planes from early this year. They will give passengers up to 3 cm more leg room, plus a USB slot for mobile devices, sales chief Goetz Ahmelmann told travel trade publication fvw.

The seats are also 1.5 kg lighter than the current model. "That's good for our environmental efficiency and our fuel bill," the magazine quoted Ahmelmann as saying.

He said the investment in new seats would total a medium three-digit million euro amount, without specifying further

Air Berlin has scrapped a $5 billion (3.23 billion pounds) order for Boeing (>> Boeing Co) planes, is reorganising routes and is looking at new ticket pricing structures as part of its restructuring efforts.

(Reporting by Victoria Bryan; editing by Thomas Atkins and Susan Thomas)

Stocks treated in this article : Boeing Co, Air Berlin Plc