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Klobuchar Calls for Reform of Airline Safety Inspections

Questions "cozy'' relationship between airlines and Federal Aviation Administration inspectors

April 10, 2008

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar said today that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) needs to reform its inspection procedures to ensure that the nation’s commercial airlines are safe and to restore the confidence of the flying public.

“The current system rests on voluntary cooperation by the airlines, but unfortunately it appears that the relationship has become too cozy,’’ Klobuchar said. “We have reports of a revolving door between the FAA and the airlines, and of airlines gaming the system to learn when their inspections will occur. We need to be clear: It is the American public that is the customer of the FAA, and not the airlines.’’

Klobuchar cited reports by FAA whistleblowers of  a “revolving door’’ in which inspectors leave the agency and take jobs with the airlines they used to regulate. She also cited reports that the agency would notify airlines in advance of upcoming inspections, allowing them to abuse the system and report safety flaws voluntarily before they are formally discovered.

Klobuchar chaired a Senate Commerce Committee hearing Thursday that was called to question FAA officials and aviation safety experts after a series of incidents suggesting that airlines are not fully complying with federal safety inspection procedures. Last month, FAA inspectors disclosed that Southwest Airlines had continued flying airplanes even though critical safety checks involving cracks in aircraft fuselages had not been performed on approximately 50 jets.

On Wednesday, American Airlines cancelled 1,000 flights in order to catch up on inspections of aircraft wiring - causing delays and inconvenience for thousands of passengers – and on Thursday it cancelled another 900 flights.

“These cancellations occurred when the airline had to double back and conduct inspections that should have been done as a matter of routine,’’ Klobuchar said. “I believe in collaboration between industry and government. But collaboration must go hand in hand with robust FAA oversight and enforcement.’’

Klobuchar noted that many individual carriers, including Minnesota-based Northwest Airlines, have had good safety records in recent years. But she said the FAA needs to adopt a recent set of safety recommendations by the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Transportation Safety Board in order to assure that the government is exercising proper oversight to ensure safety and reliability.

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