Teamsters Voice Concern About Grounding of 46 Southwest Airlines' Aircraft

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters Airline Division, which represents 26 commercial cargo and passenger air carriers nationwide, called on Congress to redouble its commitment to move forward with language in proposed Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization legislation that would harmonize and strengthen oversight of domestic and foreign repair stations that perform services for U.S. airlines.

The news that Southwest Airlines on Saturday, August 22, had to ground 46 aircraft allegedly due to illegal repairs is the latest example of why passengers need assurance that no matter where repair work is accomplished, there is a single high standard that applies to repair-station practices and a single standard for regulatory oversight.

The FAA inspects aircraft maintenance and certifies the actual parts used to ensure the safety and integrity of U.S. aircraft. The improper parts are exhaust gate assembly hinge fittings that redirect hot jet engine exhaust away from wing flaps. The parts were provided by a sub-contractor to a U.S. domestic repair station performing outsourced maintenance services for Southwest that had not secured FAA certification for them.

The FAA discovered the problem during a routine inspection on Friday. The grounding of nearly 9 percent of the airline’s fleet caused delays for passengers throughout its system. According to the Associated Press: "The parts have to come off the planes, it's just a matter of how quickly that has to be done," said FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford. "Unapproved parts don't belong on airplanes."

"The Teamsters Airline Division has been working with Congress to ensure the flying public is protected by a coherent, single and enforceable standard for all aircraft maintenance work, no matter where such work is performed; such a standard does not exist today," said David Bourne, IBT Airline Division Director. "That a highly successful and financially fit airline could not detect this breach of FAA rules by itself underscores the need for close and integrated regulatory oversight.”

“When maintenance work given to a subcontractor is further outsourced to additional subcontractors is when a single standard for maintenance practices and oversight is most
critical. The problem is compounded by an order of magnitude when aircraft maintenance is
outsourced by U.S. airlines to many foreign repair stations, some even uncertificated by FAA,” added Bourne.

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.4 million hardworking men and women in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.