Cite Four Recent Incidents Involving Boeing 737s

Pilots at United Airlines have fired the latest salvo in their contentious war of words against the carrier's management. In a letter sent last week to Acting FAA Administrator Robert Sturgell, the chief of the United branch of the Air Line Pilots Association said four recent engine failures on Boeing 737s flown by United may indicate "maintenance standards have deteriorated at United as operational decisions are increasingly driven by economic considerations."

In his letter, UAL Captain Steve Wallach called on Sturgell to press senior management at the Chicago-based carrier to "stop the egregious management decisions which have caused events such as four engine failures in two weeks," adding that United has increasingly made maintenance decisions "based on economics, often times at the expense of safety and regulatory compliance."

The Wall Street Journal reports the four incidents occurred from July 12 to August 3. The engine failures took place shortly after takeoff, and resulted in emergency returns to the airport but no injuries.

Pilots at United have been at odds with management at the nation's number 2 airline for years, over pay cuts pilots agreed to take even as senior executives, including CEO Glenn Tilton, were rewarded with lucrative bonuses. Most recently, the airline reached a temporary agreement with ALPA to limit what the airline said were pilot "work slowdowns," that forced the cancellation of hundreds of flights last month.

United doesn't deny that four of its 737 Classics -- which are due for retirement by the end of the year -- suffered engine shutdowns... but spokeswoman Jean Medina vehemently denied those failures had anything to do with the airline's maintenance practices.

The airline's "engine performance and maintenance requirements exceed all federal safety standards," Medina continued, pointedly adding "It is unconscionable and intentionally misleading for ALPA to suggest otherwise."

Medina also disputed the union's separate claim that related engine work on United's 737s is performed by outsourced maintenance workers. "All of this engine maintenance is performed by our dedicated and highly competent employees in San Francisco, and is held to our own very high safety standards and those of the FAA," she said.

Medina added United is investigating why the airliners' CFM56 turbofans shut down in flight.

FMI: www.united.com, www.alpa.org