Northwest faces safety probe
http://www.startribune.com/stories/1778/5594733.html
Looks like my suspicion that the FAA would condone "pencil whipping" maintenance might contain a few grains of truth. Apparently an respected FAA inspector got taken off the job at Northwest's suggestion of "unprofessional" conduct. Sounds like the wolf guards the henhouse - but that's seperate from what he and other inspectors told a Senator from Minnesota.
Excerpts below:
While [Senator Mark] Dayton's office did not release the inspector's memo to the Star Tribune, his letter to the FAA specified some allegations that his office has received. Among them is the contention that 470 FAA inspectors' reports on Northwest's maintenance operations, completed Aug. 20 to 31, were not entered into an electronic database. Dayton said he received allegations that many of those reports cited defects, and that, if the reports had been included in the electronic system, they would have triggered a special FAA alert and risk assessment.
Moderators: richierich, ua900, PanAm_DC10, hOMSaR
RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
Very, VERY interesting.
RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
Keep in mind that this is only one person's gripe over how many other FAA inspectors? Let's wait to see what happens before we all start jumping to conclusions.
RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
As I said in the topic I started (beat you to it FlyBoeing) 
Northwest Faces Safety Probe (by Derik737 Sep 3 2005 in Civil Aviation)
I personally know the FAA inspector at the heart of this matter. He is honest, not pro-union/anti-union and is not afraid of the "money machine". He's just looking to make sure the job is done right. To reassign him to a desk job due to NWA complaints is shameful, especially during the situation at hand.
If he making allegations, they are true. Let's see how much gets swept under the rug by $$$$.
Northwest Faces Safety Probe (by Derik737 Sep 3 2005 in Civil Aviation)
I personally know the FAA inspector at the heart of this matter. He is honest, not pro-union/anti-union and is not afraid of the "money machine". He's just looking to make sure the job is done right. To reassign him to a desk job due to NWA complaints is shameful, especially during the situation at hand.
If he making allegations, they are true. Let's see how much gets swept under the rug by $$$$.
RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
Derik737:
WHOA! Thanks for the inside information and character references. I sensed a great deal of arrogance/duplicity coming from NWA management about this entire plan, and you're definitely confirming my suspicions.
I was actually more of Rush Limbaugh libertarian on unions before I happened upon NWA's situation. I've been vaguely aware that the firm has labor difficulties, but never actually viewed them in-depth. My usual stance has been that if people don't want to work for a set wage - replace them.
A couple of things changed that in me. One thing is that I got fired from a job for very weak reasons - I know I didn't do anything that reflected badly on my character but apparently that wasn't good enough for my employer. Nothing has ever humiliated me like that experience - and from that I realized how horrible it must be to have your dignity held hostage to your paycheck and to the political whims of upper management.
The second part is Northwest- and airline-industry specific. There are some real a$$holes out there who are willing to "divide and conquer" the teams neccesary to make an airline work. The only industry which is all about money is Wall Street where many of these managers were born - in the real world you've got to build trust in people so that they'll work together.
WHOA! Thanks for the inside information and character references. I sensed a great deal of arrogance/duplicity coming from NWA management about this entire plan, and you're definitely confirming my suspicions.
I was actually more of Rush Limbaugh libertarian on unions before I happened upon NWA's situation. I've been vaguely aware that the firm has labor difficulties, but never actually viewed them in-depth. My usual stance has been that if people don't want to work for a set wage - replace them.
A couple of things changed that in me. One thing is that I got fired from a job for very weak reasons - I know I didn't do anything that reflected badly on my character but apparently that wasn't good enough for my employer. Nothing has ever humiliated me like that experience - and from that I realized how horrible it must be to have your dignity held hostage to your paycheck and to the political whims of upper management.
The second part is Northwest- and airline-industry specific. There are some real a$$holes out there who are willing to "divide and conquer" the teams neccesary to make an airline work. The only industry which is all about money is Wall Street where many of these managers were born - in the real world you've got to build trust in people so that they'll work together.
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- MidnightMike
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RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
Request for FAA Investigation
A U.S. senator from Northwest Airlines Corp.’s home state of Minnesota demands that the Federal Aviation Administration investigate complaints from FAA line inspectors that the agency is hiding safety concerns at strike-bound Northwest.
Sen. Mark Dayton, a Democrat, acted Friday after the Professional Airways Systems Specialists, a union representing FAA inspectors, contacted him with its concerns. PASS alleges that the agency has made changes in its routine at Northwest since aircraft mechanics went on strike against the airline two weeks ago.
Among the charges: That the FAA removed an inspector from Northwest’s operations after the airline complained, that about 470 FAA inspectors' reports on Northwest have not been entered into an electronic database since the strike began as previously required and that more than 58% and as many as 90% of those inspectors' reports cited defects, compared to a 3% to 5% defect rate at Northwest before the strike.
“With respect to our oversight of Northwest since the strike began, the intensity level remains,” Greg Martin, the FAA’s chief spokesman in Washington, D.C. said. “We continue to watch them very, very closely. If we find something that’s wrong, they have to fix it before they fly. Based on our oversight, they are operating to their standards and our regulations, and the aircraft that are flying are airworthy.”
Full Story @ freep.com
A U.S. senator from Northwest Airlines Corp.’s home state of Minnesota demands that the Federal Aviation Administration investigate complaints from FAA line inspectors that the agency is hiding safety concerns at strike-bound Northwest.
Sen. Mark Dayton, a Democrat, acted Friday after the Professional Airways Systems Specialists, a union representing FAA inspectors, contacted him with its concerns. PASS alleges that the agency has made changes in its routine at Northwest since aircraft mechanics went on strike against the airline two weeks ago.
Among the charges: That the FAA removed an inspector from Northwest’s operations after the airline complained, that about 470 FAA inspectors' reports on Northwest have not been entered into an electronic database since the strike began as previously required and that more than 58% and as many as 90% of those inspectors' reports cited defects, compared to a 3% to 5% defect rate at Northwest before the strike.
“With respect to our oversight of Northwest since the strike began, the intensity level remains,” Greg Martin, the FAA’s chief spokesman in Washington, D.C. said. “We continue to watch them very, very closely. If we find something that’s wrong, they have to fix it before they fly. Based on our oversight, they are operating to their standards and our regulations, and the aircraft that are flying are airworthy.”
Full Story @ freep.com
RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
While I am not sure of everything one thing I would feel certain is that NWA does not trump the FAA and if all these alegations are indeed true I want to know why the FAA wasn't/didn't do anything about it. I'm not looking at NWA as being the culprit here but our Federal entity in the FAA not doing their job well enough.
RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
Isn't their also some concern among the inspectors that they are undermanned for this job as well as being put into areas of expertise that my not be their own fields. That and the actual numbers of inspectors being reported to the press far exceed those actually available. I thought I've heard all these concerns since this began.
RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
| Quoting AirRyan (Reply 6): While I am not sure of everything one thing I would feel certain is that NWA does not trump the FAA and if all these allegations are indeed true I want to know why the FAA wasn't/didn't do anything about it. I'm not looking at NWA as being the culprit here but our Federal entity in the FAA not doing their job well enough. |
Let me start by saying that as much as I wish that this is true and AMFA would be somewhat vindicated by it, we simply don't know since this has only reached the request for an investigation stage. The facts remain to be seen.
I'm not sure how you can in good conscience say that you are not looking at NWA as being culpable, only the FAA. While the facts may bear out that the FAA is 100% responsible, it is premature, to say the least, to absolve NWA of any wrong doing in this situation.
Again, I think you know from my posts about this strike that I would love nothing more than to see NWA exposed in wrong doing in their efforts to break AMFA. But I won't go there, not without facts. It's very interesting, but let's wait for the facts to come out.
Dl757Md
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- MD11Engineer
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RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
| Quoting AirRyan (Reply 6): While I am not sure of everything one thing I would feel certain is that NWA does not trump the FAA and if all these alegations are indeed true I want to know why the FAA wasn't/didn't do anything about it. I'm not looking at NWA as being the culprit here but our Federal entity in the FAA not doing their job well enough. |
The problem is that the FAA at the same time has not only to control aviation, but at the same time help it.
I have also heard rumours in the past about corruption within the FAA.
But i applaud the inspectors who take their jobs seriously. These guys are not our enemies, they help us to prevent our bosses from pressing us into cutting corners.
Jan
RE: NWA Mechanics Update (FAA Investigation)...
| Quoting Dl757md (Reply 8): I'm not sure how you can in good conscience say that you are not looking at NWA as being culpable, only the FAA. While the facts may bear out that the FAA is 100% responsible, it is premature, to say the least, to absolve NWA of any wrong doing in this situation. |
I didn't mean to imply that NWA would be innocent of any wrongdoing just that ultimately it should have been the responsibility of the Federal entity to not be boggled down by any private business.
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