"The ability of federal safety regulators to oversee airplane maintenance at United Airlines has been hindered by inadequate staffing, high employee turnover and the improper use of virtual inspections instead of on-site reviews in some cases, according to a government watchdog audit released Friday. The U.S. Transportation Department's inspector general said the Federal Aviation Administration lacks sufficient staffing and workforce planning to effectively monitor United's large fleet."
"The FAA declined to comment on the findings but referred The Associated Press to a letter it sent the inspector general's office that was included in the audit report. In it, the FAA said it agreed with most of the recommendations and was taking steps to address them by the end of the year. "FAA will implement a more systemic approach to strengthen inspector capacity and will take other measures to ensure that staffing levels remain sufficient to meet surveillance requirements," the letter said."
"The recommendations included a reevaluation of staffing rules, an independent workplace survey of inspector workloads and office culture, and improved training on accessing and using United's safety data - a current gap that the report said currently keeps inspectors from fully evaluating maintenance issues and safety risk trends. In a statement to AP, United said it works closely with the FAA on a daily basis in addition to employing its own internal safety management system."
Federal regulators face hindered ability to oversee United Airlines maintenance due to inadequate staffing, high inspector turnover and use of virtual inspections instead of on-site reviews in some cases. The U.S. Transportation Department inspector general found the Federal Aviation Administration lacks sufficient staffing and workforce planning to monitor United's large fleet, and noted similar challenges at other carriers. Recommendations call for reevaluating staffing rules, an independent workplace survey of inspector workloads and culture, and improved training and access to United's safety data to better evaluate maintenance issues and safety risk trends. United says it works closely with the FAA and supports more FAA resources.
#faa-oversight #united-airlines-maintenance #staffing-shortages #virtual-inspections #safety-data-access
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