FAA to AA: Grounded!

Stories

15 Stories

August 2008
- Smell of Smoke Forces Emergency LA Landing
  
  CNN | Aug 5, 08 4:48 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - An American Airlines flight made an emergency return to Los Angeles today after crew members smelled smoke in the cockpit, CNN reports. The 188 Honolulu-bound passengers used inflatable chutes to exit the plane, with no injuries reported among passengers or crew. A spokesman for the airline said the pilot requested the landing as a precaution. More »
May 2008
- FAA Questions American's Lightning Safety
  
  Wall Street Journal | May 16, 08 1:40 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The FAA is questioning American Airlines' new policy on lightning inspections, and its opener is: Why doesn’t American do them anymore? American recently forbade its mechanics from doing extensive lightning damage checks unless pilots suspected a strike, a move designed to reduce delays and cancellations. Big airlines are typically allowed to tweak safety standards, reports the Wall Street Journal. More »
- American Airlines Report Roasts FAA
  
  Wall Street Journal | May 2, 08 10:16 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines blames the FAA for its recent grounding of thousands of flights, the Wall Street Journal reports. The airline is set to deliver a report today that says 3,300 flights were canceled because FAA headquarters reversed a "handshake deal" the airline had with regional aviation officials that was supposed to allow the company to comply with changes in FCC wiring standards on its MD-80 aircraft without cancellations. More »
April 2008
- Airline Blames Feds for Grounded Planes
  
  New York Times | Apr 19, 08 3:03 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines is tired of taking the heat for 2,000 flight cancellations that travelers endured last week, the New York Times reports. The once-contrite company is now criticizing the FAA, saying its new safety guidelines are unclear and unfair. “We don’t know what the rules are,” said an American technical crew chief. The company says its safety issues were minor deviations from technical standards that had been considered acceptable for years, and could have been fixed gradually. More »
- Washington Vows Better Airline Safety
  
  Associated Press | Apr 18, 08 9:06 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Today Washington vowed to beef up airplane inspections and demanded to know why American Airlines stranded 250,000 travelers last week, the AP reports. "No one at all was well served by what happened," US Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said. But she defended federal regulators, saying they did not overreact after learning of lax inspections on Southwest Airlines planes last month. More »
- American Airlines Cleared to Fly Again
  
  Associated Press | Apr 12, 08 2:05 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Federal officials cleared American Airlines today to resume flying all but three of its grounded MD-80 jets, the AP reports. American wanted to run a full schedule today, but "we still need to get the planes positioned for their next flights," a company spokesman said. The full fleet of aging planes will be on schedule by tomorrow morning, the AP reports. More »
- American Gets Half of MD-80s Flying
  
  Fort Worth Star-Telegram | Apr 11, 08 6:55 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines flew about half of its MD-80s on schedule today but will ground another 200 for inspections tomorrow morning, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports. Execs said that all planes should be back on track by tomorrow night. CEO Gerard Arpey accepted blame for the groundings that have canceled 3,000 flights, saying, "We were not in technical compliance, and that is our failure.” More »
- American Airlines Cancels 570 Flights for Tomorrow
  
  New York Times | Apr 10, 08 6:55 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines plans to cancel another 570 flights tomorrow, providing little relief for passengers in a jam after three consecutive days of massive snarls, the AP reports. The airline, however, said it was making progress getting wiring up to snuff on its MD-80s and planned to have the entire fleet of 300 planes back in the sky by Saturday, the New York Times notes. More »
- Key Inspector Says FAA Crackdown Long Overdue
  
  Wall Street Journal | Apr 10, 08 2:26 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The Federal Aviation Administration is too lax, and its recent toughening-up long overdue, the Transportation Department’s inspector general Calvin Scovel told senators today. The agency should not rely, as it has until recently, on airlines to voluntarily disclose safety oversights, and shouldn’t provide loopholes for the appropriate penalties when they do, according to the Wall Street Journal . More »
- Flight Chaos to Continue as FAA Gets Tough
  
  Wall Street Journal | Apr 10, 08 9:54 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Air travelers should brace themselves for several more months of chaos: the wave of FAA audits that began March 30, producing more than 2,000 canceled flights this week, will continue through June 30. In an effort to toughen enforcement of safety standards, the agency has moved to relying less on data provided by the airline themselves and more on on-site inspections, the Wall Street Journal reports. More »
- American to Cancel 900 More Flights Today
  
  New York Times | Apr 9, 08 11:45 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines expects to cancel 900 more flights today as the airline works to bring its MD-80 aircraft up to FAA standards, the New York Times reports. Thousands more travelers will be stranded at airport hubs, and the problem could spill into tomorrow. American is just the latest airline to be hit with groundings under the more aggressive FAA audits, and more are expected industry-wide in the weeks ahead. More »
- More Trouble With American's MD-80 Fleet: Landing Gear
  
  CNN | Apr 9, 08 4:07 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - In one of 23 such instances recently, an American Airlines pilot told CNN that troubles with the landing gear in his Boeing MD-80 forced him to return to Minneapolis moments after takeoff in December. Problems with the gear knocked out the anti-icing system in the plane, which is at the center of wiring issues that have forced American to cancel more than 1,000 flights the past two days. More »
- 1,000 American Flights Now Grounded Amid Inspections
  
  Wall Street Journal | Apr 9, 08 12:34 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines has now canceled more than 1,000 flights as it inspects wires in its 300 MD-80 aircraft, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Federal Aviation Administration raised concerns about recent inspections of the wiring, the same issue that grounded more than 400 flights last month. The process, which began yesterday, could stretch past tomorrow and affect half of American's schedule. More »
- FAA Too Cozy With Airlines, Whistle-Blowers Say
  
  Chicago Tribune | Apr 4, 08 2:50 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - An overly cozy relationship between airlines and the federal agency tasked with inspecting them has lawmakers worried in the wake of hearings yesterday on Capitol Hill, the Chicago Tribune reports. Federal Aviation Administration officials let serious safety issues fly, ignoring maintenance and inspection regulations, safety specialists, government overseers and whistle-blowers testified. More »
March 2008
- American Cancels 171 Flights to Inspect Boeing Jets
  
  Chicago Tribune | Mar 26, 08 10:25 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines canceled 171 flights today, benching almost its entire fleet of Boeing MD-80 twinjet aircrafts, the Chicago Tribune reports. American said it was inspecting how a “certain bundle of wires” was attached to ensure it complied with an FAA directive. But American said the grounding was voluntary, not FAA-mandated. The planes will be brought back into service throughout the day. More »