The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed a $24.2 million civil penalty against American Airlines — the largest ever proposed by the FAA.
The FAA said it levied the fine against the airline “for failing to correctly follow an airworthiness directive involving the maintenance of its McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft.”
The FAA contends American did not follow steps outlined in a 2006 Airworthiness Directive requiring operators to inspect wire bundles located in the wheel wells of MD-80 aircraft. The Airworthiness Directive required a one-time general visual inspection by March 5, 2008 for chafing or signs of arcing of the wire bundle for the auxiliary hydraulic pump. It also required operators to perform corrective actions in accordance with the instructions of the applicable manufacturer’s service bulletin.
“We put rules and regulations in place to keep the flying public safe,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a news release. “We expect operators to perform inspections and conduct regular and required maintenance in order to prevent safety issues. There can be no compromises when it comes to safety.”
American contends passengers were never in danger, according to published reports.
“American Airlines has always maintained its aircraft to the highest standards, and we continue to do so,” the Fort Worth Star-Telegram quoted and American spokeswoman as saying. “We assure our customers there was never a safety of flight issue surrounding these circumstances more than two years ago.”
The FAA said the airworthiness directive was aimed at preventing “the shorting of wires or arcing at the auxiliary hydraulic pump, which could result in loss of auxiliary hydraulic power or a fire in the wheel well of the aircraft.” The directive “also sought to reduce the potential of an ignition source adjacent to the fuel tanks, which, in combination with the flammable vapors, could result in a fuel tank explosion,” according to the FAA.
The FAA first detected the violations on March 25, 2008, during an inspection of two aircraft, and the federal agency informed the airline’s management that the aircraft did not comply with the directive. That, according to the FAA, prompted a series of re-inspections and additional maintenance work that occurred during the following two weeks.
On March 26, 2008, after American performed additional maintenance on its MD-80 fleet, the FAA inspected eight aircraft at American’s Tulsa maintenance base and found that seven did not comply with the directive, the FAA contends.
On April 7, 2008, the FAA inspected another nine MD-80 aircraft at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and found that eight of them still did not comply with the directive, the FAA said in a release. A 10th aircraft inspected by American mechanics also did not comply, and on April 8, 2008, American began grounding its MD-80 fleet to conduct new inspections and redo work as necessary, according to the FAA.
The FAA subsequently determined that 286 of the airline’s MD-80s were operated on a combined 14,278 passenger flights while the aircraft were not in compliance with Federal Regulations. American ultimately completed the work required by the 2006 directive.
American has 30 days from the receipt of the FAA’s civil penalty letter to respond to the agency.
