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• Apr 11, 2008 11:15 am US/Central
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  American Airlines: Inspections Almost Complete

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American Airlines: Inspections Almost Complete

200 Flights Grounded, Service May Not Be Immediately Restored

 CBS News Interactive: Eye On Air Safety

NEW YORK (CBS) ― American Airlines grounded 200 flights Saturday, but said they are almost finished with the latest round of wiring harness inspections that sidelined it's entire fleet of 300 MD-80 aircraft.
 
However, until the airplanes are fueled up and staffed, American likely won't be able to restore full service until Sunday. 

Airline industry analyst Darry Jenkins disagreed with the airline's massive flight cancellations. "You did not need to ground an entire fleet. These things could have been done in overnight inspections."

According to critics, a quarter of a million people saw their flights and travel plans uneccesarily cancelled. Both the FAA and American said the airline's failure to tie off the wires inside the wheel well at precise intervals was the impetus for the service disruptions. Some were an inch and a half off.

"They will have used the micrometer and make sure that the spacing is one inch - does that enhance safety in any way? No way at all," alleged John Goglia, former NTSB member.  

American Airlines officials said they asked the FAA for permission to stagger the inspections, but the FAA denied the request. "While we were sympathetic to the inconvience to the traveling public, American had 18-months to comply with the airworthiness directive," the FAA told CBS 2HD. 

"Because so many of the MD-80s were out of compliance, the FAA had no choice but to ground all of them," the agency also said.

Sam Mayer from the Allied Pilots Association, explained the danger: "You've got a wiring bundle running next to a fuel tank where the potential for sparks. We've all seen back in the TWA 800 incident what can happen when you mix sparks and jet fuel."

CEO Gerard Arpey said he took full responsibility for the airline's failure to comply with a federal safety rule designed to prevent electrical fires in the planes. Arpey said neither the airline's mechanics nor the Federal Aviation Administration were to blame for the more than 3,000 canceled flights so far this week.

American scratched more than 900 flights Thursday, the third straight day of major cancellations, while its mechanics worked overtime to check the aircraft and comply with the rule. The company said all its MD-80s would be back in service by Saturday night.

The airline canceled more than 400 flights for the same reason two weeks ago. But the repairs done then didn't meet FAA standards, resulting in this week's debacle.

(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)