FAA proposes to fine Southwest Airlines $12M
Source: Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday it is proposing a $12 million civil fine against Southwest Airlines for failing to comply with safety regulations related to repairs on Boeing 737 jetliners.
Beginning in 2006, Southwest made "extreme makeover" alterations to eliminate potential cracking of the aluminum skin on 44 jetliners, the FAA said. An FAA investigation determined that Southwest's contractor, Aviation Technical Services Inc. of Everett, Washington, failed to follow proper procedures for replacing the fuselage as well as other work on the planes, the agency said. All of the work was done under the supervision of Southwest, which was responsible for seeing that it was done properly, the FAA said.
Southwest then returned the planes to service in 2009 and began flying them even after the FAA "put the airline on notice that these aircraft were not in compliance" with safety regulations, the agency said.
During its investigation, the FAA also found that Aviation Technical Services' workers applied sealant beneath the new skin panels but did not install fasteners in all of the rivet holes fast enough for the sealant to be effective.
Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/faa-proposes-fine-southwest-airlines-12m
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My old Dad must be spinning in his grave. He was a proud aircraft mechanic/inspector/supervisor for 44 years and held the men he supervised to the highest standards, even to the point of irritating the bosses who were above it all.
People died on Alaska Airlines Flight 261 in 2000 because the FAA wasn't enforcing a specific directive closely enough.
I will also say, I still find Southwest Airlines a safe and pleasant airline to fly. Their employees are very kind (from my experience), which might be attributable to the fact that they are among the best paid in the industry.
This ruling specifically relates to the 737-300, most of which are between 15 and 20 years old. The 737-700 and -800, both of which exist in Southwest's fleet, are much newer and haven't had the metal fatigue problems. You can see on the website which type of 737 is operating a flight before you buy it.
Lastly, this is what happens when metal fatigue gets out of hand. Some people refer to this as the "737 convertible incident":
(yes, that actually happened while the plane was in flight)
