Despite an ABC News report that said that alleged violations of American Eagle's weight and balance policies has put the carrier's participation in the Aviation Safety Action Program in jeopardy, American Eagle told Regional Aviation News that nothing could be further than the truth. American Eagle indicated that the airline sees no problem with continuing with the safety program. In addition the FAA confirmed AE was still in the program and suspension was never at issue.
The ABC News report was a follow up to a report it published in September saying the Federal Aviation Administration is investigating American Eagle for 19 incidents in which planes allegedly took off with overloaded aircraft. Related Story ABC said the FAA general counsel is considering an enforcement action but has made no decision. The airline reported two incidents to the FAA, saying planes took off beyond weight and balance limits, prompting the FAA to investigate further. ABC said the FAA general counsel is considering an enforcement action but has made no decision.
"At a recent meeting, the FAA official in charge of ASAP, Tom Longridge, agreed with the recommendation of two FAA investigators that American Eagle's participation in the program be discontinued, according to sources within the aviation community," said ABC in its report. "When contacted by ABCNews.com, Longridge refused to comment on American Eagle's status."
ABC News reported that in a 20th case, in which the carrier allegedly loaded a 300-pound maintenance staircase and four 50-pound sandbags into a cargo hold for ballast without being loaded into load calculations. ABC News reported that the stairs were not secured in the hold, meaning they could throw off the aircraft's center of gravity if they shifted. FAA Spokesperson Roland Herwig would not comment on an on-going investigation.
However, American Eagle said some of the incidents in the ABC News report dated back to 2004, long before the airline began using an electronic weight and balance program.
Even so, American Eagle’s ASAP remains in place. It has several ASAP Memoranda of Understanding with its pilot, dispatcher and mechanics corps. However, American Airlines and its pilots union the Allied Pilots Association failed to reach agreement during the latest rounds of contract negotiations, allowing its participation in the ASAP to expire. Herwig noted that safety reporting systems are more than one layer deep and pointed to the NASA’s Aviation Reporting System (ARS).
“ASAP memoranda of understanding have validity dates, that is, they can expire unless FAA extends them,” he said. “The MOU between FAA, American Airlines, and the Allied Pilot's Association was extended several times over the last year; the last extension lapsed October 12, 2008.”
Even so, Flight Safety Foundation expressed disappointment. "The APA’s willingness to discard a 14-year program that has done so much for our pilots, our airline and our industry is impossible to understand. While we are disappointed by the APA 's action, we do not believe that the safety of American’s operations will not be affected by the program’s expiration. American will provide its pilots with a confidential hotline and online reporting system to report concerns directly to our safety department.”