"Southwest, FAA Relationship Cited in Probe"

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Southwest, FAA Relationship Cited in Probe
By Sholnn Freeman
The Washington (DC) Post


A cozy relationship between the Federal Aviation Administration and
Southwest Airlines led to safety lapses last year that put thousands of
passengers at risk, according to a government report released yesterday. 

The Department of Transportation's inspector general office said the FAA
developed "an overly collaborative relationship" with Southwest. The FAA
said earlier this year that its inspectors improperly allowed Southwest to
fly 46 Boeing 737 jets that needed to be inspected for fuselage cracks. 

The inspector general's report listed proposals aimed at beefing up
government supervision of the FAA's main safety systems, which encourage
airlines to voluntarily report safety issues without penalties. The report
also calls for a "cooling-off period" of perhaps two years that would
prohibit FAA inspectors from being hired by the same airlines they oversaw
as government employees. The report also recommended rotating inspectors and
establishing an independent organization to investigate safety issues
identified by FAA employees. 

Inspector General Calvin Scovel criticized FAA management for losing sight
of its mission and for fostering a culture where air carriers, and not the
public, are considered the "primary customer." 

"FAA must ensure its air carrier oversight mission clearly identifies the
flying public as a primary stakeholder and beneficiary of its inspection
efforts," he said. He suggested the agency commit to the mission in writing
and communicate it to its inspection staff. 

The FAA said it found the report "extremely helpful." The agency said it had
begun implementing many of the findings. "We welcome the IG recommendations
and take them very seriously as we continue our constant work to improve the
safety of the flying public," the agency said. 

The investigation raises deeper questions about the effectiveness of FAA
oversight, given its reliance on voluntary disclosures by airlines. The
Southwest report is one of a series of investigations launched by the
inspector general into recent maintenance troubles at airlines. 

The inspector general's office is now thought to be focusing on the FAA's
oversight of American Airlines, according to the carrier and its pilots'
union. 

For eight days last spring, Southwest operated the 46 unchecked aircraft on
1,451 flights, carrying 145,000 passengers. 

Cracks could have led to fuselage separation and rapid depressurization.
When Southwest later inspected the aircraft, it found fuselage cracks in
five of them, the report said. Two FAA whistle-blowers brought the problems
to light. 

The FAA has required regular aircraft inspections since an Aloha Airlines
737 lost a major portion of its hull at 24,000 feet in 1988, resulting in
one death and multiple injuries. 

In a statement, Southwest spokeswoman Beth Harbin said the airline is
prepared to follow any guidelines that result from the review. She said the
airline is conducting an internal review and would continue to make changes
to comply with FAA directives as well as its own maintenance policies.

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