Southwest Airlines Under Investigation by FAA for Using Unapproved Parts
Wednesday, September 9th, 2009
The Federal Aviation Administration is currently investigating the maintenance operations of Southwest Airlines because they have reason to believe that the airline has been using unapproved parts to repair some of its fleet. According to recent reports, Southwest Airlines had to ground 46 planes for several hours on Saturday, August 22 and canceled about 15 flights under FAA orders. Investigators believe that the facility responsible for maintaining Southwest Airlines planes had been using hinge assemblies from a manufacturer that was not certified to make these special parts. Southwest Airlines was forced to ground all planes that had been modified or repaired with these hinged parts because the FAA prohibits any carrier to fly airplanes that are outfitted with unapproved parts. Even though the planes were grounded, some planes were permitted to fly temporarily because the parts did not pose any immediate dangers. Still, Southwest Airlines was guilty of violating an important FAA rule.
All parts used by commercial airlines are inspected regularly as part of the quality control process, and investigators from the FAA may conduct surprise checks on an ongoing basis at various facilities. The FAA has been monitoring airline repair facilities since the 1990s and sets the standard for commercial carriers, enforcing rules that dictate that unapproved parts are not permitted at any time. Unapproved parts pose a safety risk, and every airline must conduct its own inspection and quality checks to make sure its maintenance teams are adhering to FAA mandates and guidelines at all times.
Southwest Airlines may be facing heavy penalties and fees as a result of this mistake, and will most likely be under heavy scrutiny by the FAA in the oncoming years. Southwest Airlines is the leading airline in the United States, and has already paid millions of dollars in fines for missing FAA-required inspections.
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