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WASHINGTON -- Federal regulators sent mixed messages to American Airlines about the condition of the fleet that was grounded last month, the airline says, including granting permission to the carrier to continue flying while fixes were made.
In its most complete accounting of last month's massive cancellations, American said that its maintenance shortcomings didn't justify canceling more than 3,000 flights. The carrier insisted that the problem never compromised flight safety.
And while the Federal Aviation Administration has said the decision to cancel flights rested with American, the carrier indicated that an FAA official said, "You need to put those aircraft on the ground."
American spelled out the controversy in a letter to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters, which the DOT released Friday. In its own letter to Peters, the FAA said the blame was American's -- further evidence that a wide gulf remains between how carriers view the FAA's role and how the regulator sees itself policing airlines.
American twice grounded its fleet of MD80s -- in March and April -- after FAA inspectors questioned the way the airline fulfilled a directive that addressed the way electric wires are secured to guard against fire risks.
Because the carrier owns so many McDonnell Douglas MD80 jets, American was involved in writing a service bulletin in 2005 that formed the basis for an FAA regulation.
The FAA didn't require compliance with its rule until March 2008 but said that the airline "failed to take opportunities available" before the deadline.
The FAA also denied that it reached an informal agreement with American to permit the carrier to continue flying. And regulators differed with American about the safety risk posed by the airline's faulty work.
"Left uncorrected, the workmanship errors would have increased the odds that one or more of American's large MD80 fleet would have experienced arcing, smoking or fire problems that have caused serious incidents and fatal accidents in the past," the FAA wrote.
FAA officials declined on Friday to say whether American might face a civil penalty for the way it handled the work. The FAA fined Southwest Airlines $10.2 million in February for flying planes that should have been grounded for required inspections.
Separately, American said it's talking to the FAA about its inspection procedures for suspected lightning strikes. Lightning can hit airplanes, sometimes as much as several times a year, but "the airplanes are designed to discharge that electricity and to keep planes flying," said Tim Wagner, an American spokesman.
American said the FAA approached it last year about changes to the "work cards" that document the manner of inspections.
A mechanic and two pilots also reported concerns to the FAA about the revised procedures through a self-reporting program.
FAA officials said the inquiry doesn't amount to an investigation. |
