Tue, Jul 01, 2008
DOT Inspectors Visit American Airlines
The FAA is facing a wide-ranging
investigation into recent maintenance troubles at airlines. The
Washington Post quotes the Department of Transportation's inspector
general in reporting the probe was prompted by congressional
criticism of the FAA.
The office of inspector general would not name the one airline
it says is being targeted in particular, but pilots and American
Airlines officials report the IG staff has been focused on that
carrier in recent weeks.
American came under fire in the wake of revelations involving
FAA inspections at its cross-town competitor, Southwest Airlines.
The FAA admitted earlier this year its inspectors improperly
allowed Southwest Airlines to fly approximately 45 jets in need of
key safety checks.
The inspector general is expected to release a report on that
case soon. "We will certainly work with the inspector general as
they go through their audits," FAA spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere
said,
Though Southwest
was fined $10.2 million in the aftermath of
that incident, the carrier's operations were impacted only
slightly. That wasn't the case weeks later at American, however,
when that carrier was forced to ground its entire fleet of MD-82
and MD-83 aircraft for wiring inspections. Those groundings
resulted in over 3,300 cancelled flights, and some 350,000 stranded
passengers.
American says the FAA forced those cancellations... an
accusation the agency has downplayed in the past. Spokesman John
Hotard confirmed officials with the DOT recently visited the
carrier's Fort Worth, TX headquarters... but added he expects
inspector found few, if any, problems.
"We've got the most experienced and well-trained workforce in
the industry, and we not only maintain our aircraft but we maintain
other airlines' aircraft as well," Hotard said.
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