Regulation Policy

GAO Finds Serious Flaws In FAA System

Airline safety and airport security problems often go unreported, according to a General Accounting Office report released yesterday. Federal Aviation Administration inspectors, claiming they are frustrated by paperwork, admit they don't bother to write up violations.

  • Two-thirds of the 718 inspectors interviewed said they were disheartened that the actions they recommend are ignored or modified by their regional or national supervisors.

  • Fines recommended by inspectors were cut by 80 percent and in 30 percent of the cases were dropped altogether.

  • Nearly half the recommendations to punish carriers with temporary suspensions were rejected in the six-year period of the study.

  • About one-third of the inspectors said they report fewer than half the violations they uncover in the maintenance and operations of airliners -- and two-thirds admitted they let at least some problems slip by.

The GAO found that the FAA has failed to establish guidelines for inspecting aircraft - - and inspections consist mainly of inspectors looking for obvious problems.

Source: Fred Bayles, "FAA Ignores Violations, Report Says," USA Today, March 31, 1998.

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