Maintenance And Completion Issues Draw Fines From The Administrator

The FAA is proposing a civil penalty of $700,000 against Executive Airlines, Inc., and $450,000 against Dassault Falcon. Both proposed penalties were announced Monday.

Executive Airlines, the San Juan, Puerto Rico airline, which does business as American Eagle Airlines, allegedly operated eight of its ATR-42 twin-turboprop airliners when they were not in compliance with FARs.

The FAA alleges that when Executive Airlines did heavy maintenance checks on its aircraft in 2007 and 2008, mechanics did not perform and document required, detailed visual inspections to detect possible cracks on the aileron center hinge bearing fittings.  Executive Airlines operated the eight aircraft on 6,479 flights between the incomplete earlier inspections and September 26-27, 2008, when the company completed the proper inspections and procedures.

"All maintenance procedures must be followed at all times.  There are no exceptions when it comes to safety," said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt.

The proposed civil penalty against Dassault Falcon Jet Corp. and its completion center in Little Rock, AR, alleges that certain parts were improperly plated and installed on airplanes.  Installation of improperly plated parts made the aircraft not compliant with FARs.

The FAA alleges that after receiving a warning notice on this issue in January 2008, Dassault Falcon approved 18 airplanes for return to service between March 2008 and April 2009.  Those aircraft were outfitted with hundreds of parts electroplated by the company or its contractors, but the companies did not have the required FAA rating to perform such work.  The electroplated parts included both decorative pieces and structural parts.

Electroplating uses electric current to deposit a thin coating of precious metal on the base metal of a particular part. Because of the precision and quality required, repair stations or their contractors must have a specialized service rating to perform the work.   If the process is not completed properly, the base metal might be weakened by "hydrogen embrittlement," a condition that might lead to catastrophic failure of a part at stresses well below the metal's normal strength.

"All those performing maintenance on an aircraft must have the appropriate skills and credentials," said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt.

Both Executive Airlines and Dassault Falcon have 30 days from the receipt of the FAA's enforcement letter to respond to the agency.

FMI: www.faa.gov