In a warning to American Airlines pilots, their union, the Allied Pilots Association (APA), says it’s seen “a significant spike in safety- and maintenance-related problems in our operation.”
The union claims that among the “problematic trends” it’s been tracking are tools left in wheel wheels, an increasing number of collisions between aircraft while they’re being towed, an increasing number of items left in the safety area near jet bridges and “pressure to return aircraft to line service to maintain on-time performance due to a lack of spares.”
CBS News obtained pictures of a hammer the APA says was found in an Airbus A319 wheel well on March 25 at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport before Flight 1654 departed for Cedar Rapids, Iowa. According to the APA, the flight’s first officer discovered it during his pre-flight walkaround and notified the captain. The captain called maintenance, who in turn inspected the aircraft and found a “Channellock style pliers and a screwdriver also located inside the wheel well.” The union says there were no open maintenance actions when the tool was found.
In a message to union members Monday, APA President Capt. Ed Sicher says, “We met with (American’s) senior management earlier this month to discuss the operational hazards we have identified. … We now have management’s full attention. We secured management’s commitment to involve the union earlier in the safety risk assessment (SRA) process, and we are likewise seeking a commitment that APA will have a seat at the table for the entire quality assurance process. … Management’s initial response to our concerns was encouraging.”
American, which is based in Fort Worth, Texas, said, “Safety at any airline is a shared mission and it’s especially true at American. Our robust safety program is guided by our industry-leading safety management system” that includes collaborating with regulators and its unions.
While not commenting directly on the issues raised by the APA, the Federal Aviation Administration said it “requires all U.S. airlines to have Safety Management Systems (SMS) through which they identify, monitor and address potential hazards early on before they become serious problems.”
