OK, stand-by one... Let me make sure I understand this...
The premier airline of the third planet from the sun, i.e., Earth, is cancelling thousands of flights because wiring bundles in the nose gear wheel well of the mad dog are not tied correctly.
What?
And the reason for this is... (according to the news media) The F.A.A. is getting tough with their former [customers]??? Wait a second.... Run that by me again, please. Uh, if there are no airlines to regulate, there will be no regulators, i.e., no F.A.A. What the heck is going on here? We are talking about American Airlines... How long do you think they can lose daily cash flow and survive $112 oil? Not very #$(*&%!(censored by wife of my youth) long...
It reminds me of a teenager wrecking the family car... Well, I didn't know...
The premier airline of the third planet from the sun, i.e., Earth, is cancelling thousands of flights because wiring bundles in the nose gear wheel well of the mad dog are not tied correctly.
What?
And the reason for this is... (according to the news media) The F.A.A. is getting tough with their former [customers]??? Wait a second.... Run that by me again, please. Uh, if there are no airlines to regulate, there will be no regulators, i.e., no F.A.A. What the heck is going on here? We are talking about American Airlines... How long do you think they can lose daily cash flow and survive $112 oil? Not very #$(*&%!(censored by wife of my youth) long...
It reminds me of a teenager wrecking the family car... Well, I didn't know...
23 comments:
Is this the latest offspring of liability and a litigation culture gone mad?
this is a pretty sad business. American is being vilified by the news media .. but if they didn't inspect, and somehting went wrong, anything at all they'd be piloried.
I do not see where this sudden busrst of FAA/airline coziness has come about ... I work for neither but I have been watching government regulation since before there was an FAA and, with many sins they could be faulted for, I see little fs any evidence the FA has ever been 'in bed' with the airlines.
By the way, I meant to post a week or so back ... I completed a very worthwhile (to me, anyway) project of reading every one of your blog posts. Thank you so much for giving us a real-world view. I've spent many a happy passenger hour on 319/320's (most often COS-MSP) and it's nice to know al ittle more about the folks on the other side of the cockpit door (I'm old, I can call it cockpit if I wnat to). keep writing, I'll keep reading.
This all seemed to come to a head when the 757 windshield heaters started overheating. Somehow the media decided it was time to start bashing the regulatory boards and scaring the heck out of the flying public. It just shows how much of an influence these news sensationalism shows can.
I will be flying on American MD80s on Monday and Friday (in theory, of course). I plan to carry on all of my luggage…somehow I can feel myself sitting in ORD with thousands of other stranded passengers.
Hey Dave, Craig in MCo again.. I can't believe the FAA and their obvious "knee-jerk" reaction to getting their proverbial butts kicked last week by the congress for the SWA deal.. I just goes to show how a few bad apples can make it bad for everyone.. if one were to look at the technical aspects of this MD80 wire harness AD.. they would see that the existing metiods were just fine and met the intent of the AD and the MMEL approved time to repair or inspect program.. but mother FAA decided to tighten up the requirements to be exact spacing between ties.. I mean the guys are literally measuring between every wire tie... just stupid.. and at the cost of a airline.. I predict this will put AA right into chapter 11.. All of us in the airlines know this is costing hundereds of MILLIONS in lost income and expenses for AA..
If the Government does not get these fuel prices under control NOW.. I fear the whole airline system will collapse on itself.. along with the truckers.. This country is in big economic trouble.. Today another sad day for all of us, Frontier Airlines filed chapter 11.. who is going to be next??
How do you really feel, Dave?
This is scary to watch from an outsider's perspective. I can't imagine having my the industry of my livelihood crumble before my eyes. Best wishes...
Ps: The resort industry in northern Minnesota is expecting a boom year as nobody will be able to afford to go far this summer and apparently there won't be many airlines to take them there either...
Tim G in MN
It seems that everyone who has posted so far has either villified the media or the FAA and has downplayed the actual wiring problem (if there is one) on the MD-80. But as a passenger, I would want to know the truth about if there is or is not a problem with the wiring. I am flying on a Delta MD-80 next week. According to what I read, faulty wiring could potentially cause a fire. Isn't it a good idea to ground all the planes if this is true? Wouldn't we rather put an airline out of business than risk an in-flight fire? I don't know the technical truth to this, but the passengers' point of view must be heard on this also. Safety has got to come first, even over economics.
tim g- I think the Feds are hoping that a big carrier fails; this will remove thousands of seats from the market and allow the remaining carriers to raise ticket prices to cover costs.
anonymous 1055- OK, I'll bite on this... The media could care less about the accuracy or content of their coverage. You can prove that to yourself by disecting coverage on any subject with which you are familiar. Why would one expect media coverage to be accurate on anything else? So, yes, they need to be criticized... Strongly.
The FAA... I can't believe the Feds are actually allowing this to happen, as if these aircraft are dangerous to the flying public. They are not. This is blow back from the SWA media circus of a few weeks ago. To someone in the business, as I am, the SWA fiasco was puzzling. They (SWA)used to be the darling of the media, never doing anything wrong and fighting the evil big airlines and their evil, fat, middle age, white CEOs that get their kicks by stranding passengers at O'Hare. Then, suddenly, without warning, the media throws SWA under the bus...(?)Wow!
No, there is some monkey business going on in the FAA and I can't wait to read the first tell all book on this subject. I will even buy the hard cover version.
I don't fly AA if I can avoid it - they've lost my luggage too many times, missed the schedule too many times, I have encountered too many surly cabin crew, and too many of their aircraft are too old.
I have every confidence that AA aircraft and maintenance are safe.
Whether this is a maintenance issue or a paperwork issue, the job wasn't completed. AA should have done it right. And the FAA should have figured out a way to get compliance in a highly timely fashion without bringing an airline to their knees. However, in the culture that is the US Government (based on risk avoidance), it is safer for the FAA to look at this in a binary fashion, rather than to take a smidgeon of risk and agree to an aggressive compliance schedule.
As for the comment regarding regulating fuel prices: IMHO opinion nothing could be more short-sighted. Enery costs are increasing, and the smallest shock (offline refinery, hurricane, damaged pipeline, ecological disaster) will cause significant escalation in fuel prices. Anything that government does to insulate people from the reality of the increasing costs is going to delay the inevitable adjustment - and when (not if) the higher prices hit in the future it will be on an unprepared population. Of course, letting folks feel the full pain of energy costs would not be a politically expediant approach, so it isn't going to happen, and the US economy (which is built on the assumption of low energy costs) will continue to be exposed to a major collapse.
American has been going to hell in a handbasket since the TWA takeover. The FAA is trying to draw the publics interest while the government tries to salvage what's left of this administration prior to the election. Corporate greed is a nasty thing.
If the inspections weren't done, then get on schedule and do them, we don't need to lose another carrier and face even more problems.
The trickle down theory of the rape of consumers by the price of oil is going to hurt not only the airlines, the truckers, but the assorted industries that cater to travelers. It's going to be a long boring summer if people can't afford to get away. I can't afford a trip to Vegas if it costs me $200 for gas.
amulbunny
In this case, AA acted on the SB, the optional notice of a possible problem that often precedes an AD. When the AD came out, it recommended a different method of solving the problem than the one that AA had already used to solve it. For some reason, probably related to trying to change the subject from errors they made at SW, the FAA decided that the original rectification was not sufficient, and AA grounded the type.
Let's see--SWA based in TX. A too-cozy relationship between SWA and the FAA gets Congress' attention. FAA Texas office embarrassed as stuff hits rotating air circulator. FAA must flex muscles to show how tough it is. Nearest easy target in TX is AA.
Thus, AA suffers the consequences of the FAA playing to cozy with SWA. SWA either congratulates itself on its incredible luck dodging that bullet, or looks at the money it spent putting former FAA inspectors and bigwigs on its payroll and congratulates itself on its wise investment.
Meanwhile, another big mad dog operator thanks its lucky stars it is not based in or has a hub in TX.
I'm glad I'm not planning on flying in the near future--waiting room benches don't make very good mattresses.
I wonder how Amtrak is doing these days . . .
I have a question about the pilots.
http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0408/510863.html
"The pilots union took out full-page newspaper ads that asked, "Why is American Airlines Failing Its Customers?" "
Are they enjoying kicking their own employer while their down? A little to far off subject, Dave, sorry. I would love to read your comments.
Ben
Dave, if there is a slight chance of failure because of wwrong wiwres bundling, ANY arline in the world (no matter if it is glorified by you here AA) should solve the problem asap. And oil price has nothing to do with it, it is about pax safety! BTW. didn't US caused oil price sky rocketing by their Middle East policy?
Change of subject. Just re-read your bio and saw Vince Flynn books. Been a fan of his since reading about the good guys throwing the bad guys into the pig pen. I call these Charles Bronson books because they, the good guys, get to win and do what we all want to do but wimp laws will not allow.
Dave, AA is the worst of all the majors when it comes to maintenance. The FAA incident database is filled with AA issues, many due to poor or improper maintenance. The wiring problem may seem silly but you'd think differently if frayed wires ignited the fuel tank on a bird you were flying. Also, read up on all the AA uncontained engine failures on the maddog. I wouldn't fly them if my life depended on it.
Sounds like a lot of untested theory's (conspiracy). I'd like to hear what John Lear would have to say about the latest SWA/AA issues with the FAA. He's probably say that space Aliens are responsible, and that it is proof that the government was behind 9/11. Just Kidding. But seriously, I am really pissed about the way the FAA handled this problem. Dave I am with you, I want to read the final report about what is going on here.
What is the true reason for this? I just don't see how the FAA could discover a problem with AA's MD-80's out the the blue, and decide to essentially ground the entire fleet (~300) planes. The wiring used in older planes has always been an issue, google Kapton Wiring.It would be easy to make claims that there was an issue and still C.Y.A. Did AA piss of the FAA? Or is this the FAA's rebuttal to the SWA story? What ever the reason I HOPE that reason behind this is truly out of passenger safety. It would be so destructive if the FAA based their decision to show their power.
I think a valid question to ask is, was there a incident that caused the FAA to do this? If so then the grounding of the entire fleet would be justified. After all this isn't the first or last time a fleet has been grounded. But again, if not then it was hasty and irresponsible act on the FAA.
About the news media, I never trust what I see on a news story. Just another reason all pilots must always be conscious we are ambassadors of an aviation. Keep the blue side up and the greasy side down.
to my understanding this is nothing more than fine print and has little to do with safety. Appearantly the wiring in the wheel well several years ago was deemed to be attached a stated number of inches apart and the FAA gave the ok as long as it was reflected in AA's mx documents. Well in a basic miscommunication the wiring was set a different difference than specified (1/2") and the FAA came in to make sure all the wiring was moved 1/2" to comply with what AA originally mandated. So basically they are loosing millions upon millions over wiring that needs to be moved an uncritical 1/2". The FAA is acting on principle not common sense, as the second highest regulated industry out there and the intense scrutiny right now they decided to act. The airlines and the FAA have to operate under this scrutiny and attention to detail otherwise safety would eventually be compromised. Maybe the FAA could have just let AA fix them as their mx cycles come around....this is why I got out of the business. hope that all made sense too lazy to proof read
Northwest and Delta merge!!! I work for Mesaba, do I still have a job? Lawrence from KALB.
Dave, as always... thanks for lending some light to this.
I flew Alaska Air extensively over the years when most of their aircraft (in the lower 48) were MD-80's.
I had a ticket LAS-PDX less than a week after one of the airplanes ended up in the Pacific off of Oxnard, CA.
I made the flight. Up and back. Didn't think twice about it.
Stuff happens, and sometimes it is a maintenance issue. But government crackdowns to the letter of the law (instead of the safe, spirit of the law) on a hurting industry can't do any good.
Why does American Airlines have so much trouble making money? I don't pretend to understand the business, but locally (Ireland) we have three "local" airlines, all of which are in rude health, $115 dollar oil notwithstanding.
Ted Newkirk,
your "ignorance is bliss" attitude is great. Do some research and find out how Alaska violated the maintenance requirements on the jack-screw and how the cozy FAA office looked the other way and cut them slack. If you really want to be appalled, read the flight recorder transcript and see how the plane had at least 30 minutes to put down at the nearest airport (LAX) which the pilots wanted to do but were afraid to due to possibly losing there jobs. Airline economics pressured them to proceed to SFO. Say a prayer for all of those souls... and while you are at it you can pray for the multiple 737 flights lost due to a poorly designed tail rudder mechanism that was covered up with FAA help for many years against the desire of the NTSB.
NTSB and Pilots = the good guys
FAA and Airlines = the bad guys
Congress = idiots
Furthermore, look at the USAir pilot who accidently discharged a weapon that he was carrying to protect his plane from hijack. He is being scapegoated for the accident and they are trying to fire him. The pilots are being put in terrible positions where if they try to be safe they risk losing their livelihood forever and if they go along with the system, very bad things can happen. As a business traveller I am outraged and disgusted. This industry needs an enema.
Cloudesley Shovell--
Continental has a hub in Houston, so your theory doesn't exactly make sense....
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