Same Airline Once Employed CC3407 Captain

The FAA is attempting to exact a $1.3 million civil penalty from Florida-based Gulfstream International Airlines, Inc. for violations of the FAR's. Gulfstream has been making some news of late for also being a former employer of the Captain of the ill-fated Continental Connection 3407 flight.

The alleged violations include improper scheduling of flight crew duty time, and the installation of unapproved air conditioner compressors and improperly maintained vent blowers on the airline's fleet of 27 BE-1900-D aircraft.

An FAA review of the airline's electronic record-keeping system for tracking crew duty and rest time revealed that Gulfstream International did not accurately input the proper data from its manually generated hard-copy aircraft logbook records into the electronic system. The discrepancies resulted in scheduling crew members in excess of daily and weekly flight time limitations.
During a June 2008 inspection, the FAA determined that the airline had installed unapproved automotive air conditioner compressors on its aircraft between September 2006 and May 2008. Following the FAA inspection, the airline grounded all of the affected aircraft and replaced the units with approved aircraft air conditioner compressors.

In the course of a July 2008 inspection of Gulfstream International avionics and component shops in Fort Lauderdale, the FAA discovered that the airline had installed improperly maintained vent blowers on six planes between January 2008 and June 2008. Following that inspection, the airline replaced the blowers with properly maintained units.

Gulfstream International Airlines has 30 days from the receipt of the civil penalty letter to respond to the FAA.

FMI: http://gulfstreamair.com