Comair Pays $3,000 For Light Bulb | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-07.07.25

Airborne-NextGen-07.08.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.09.25

Airborne-FlightTraining-07.10.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.11.25

Tue, Jan 27, 2004

Comair Pays $3,000 For Light Bulb

FAA Proposes $44,000 Fine

FAA investigators claim to have compiled an inch-thick file on a 1999 complaint about a burned-out bulb in a "no smoking, fasten seat belt" sign onboard a Comair jet.

The accumulating paper shuffle ended only after the airline paid a $3,000 fine to settle the complaint, the Gannett News Service reported on Monday.

The hearing in Federal Aviation Administration v. Comair was to start Thursday; four years after the case began. The agency's beef against Comair: A burnt-out light bulb, worth 77 cents, in a no smoking-fasten seat belt sign. The FAA's proposed fine: $44,000.

According to documents obtained in a Freedom of Information Act request by Gannett, the problem started Sept. 17, 1999, on a flight from Long Island to Cincinnati. An off-duty FAA inspector was on the flight and noticed that the first-row "no smoking" sign wasn't working. She reported it to a flight attendant, who then reported the issue to the Captain, who did not immediately log the burnt-out bulb so maintenance crews could fix it.

The bulb was replaced two days later. But Comair flew the plane four times with the light out, violating three separate FAA regulations, since the FAA case summary claimed the jet was "not in an airworthy condition,"

In April 2003, the FAA announced its proposed fine: $11,000 for each trip, $44,000 total.

"It's not simply the fact the light was out, but the follow-up actions required were not taken," an FAA spokesperson told the news service.

Comair appealed the fine to the Department of Transportation. By Nov. 13, the two sides had settled with Comair paying a $3,000 fine. Light-bulb violations don't come up often, said Douglas Burdette, an aviation safety inspector at the FAA office in Oklahoma City that handles violation data.

But even he acknowledged: "That seems like a pretty heavy penalty."

FMI:  www.comair.com

Advertisement

More News

NTSB Final Report: Aviat A1

Airplane Bounced About 3 Ft Then Touched Back Down And Then, With No Brakes Applied, The Airplane Began Veering To The Left Analysis: The pilot entered the airport traffic pattern >[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (07.08.25)

Aero Linx: British Microlight Aircraft Association (BMAA) The primary focus within all aviation activity is SAFETY. In all aspects of our sport SAFETY must come first, whether it b>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: Fly Corvair’s Reliable Engine Alternative

From SnF25 (YouTube Edition): William Wynne Builds Practical Aircraft Engines on the Corvair Platform Seeking an affordable alternative to the traditional aircraft engine options, >[...]

ANN FAQ: Contributing To Aero-TV

How To Get A Story On Aero-TV News/Feature Programming How do I submit a story idea or lead to Aero-TV? If you would like to submit a story idea or lead, please contact Jim Campbel>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: CiES Fuel-Quantity and e-Throttle Systems Praised

From 2023 (YouTube Edition): Bridge of CiES CiES Inc. is a Bend, Oregon-based designer and manufacturer of modular embedded aircraft systems and sensors. The company’s fuel-l>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC