Southwest Airlines PR Manager Paula Berg responded in the comment section of our original post on the “unsafe” plane report. Here’s what she has to say:
Some media reports are suggesting that the FAA plans to fine Southwest, but to date, we have not received any notification or indication from the FAA that that is what they plan to do.
The inspections in question were one of many routine, redundant, and overlapping inspections of our fleet. And, as you and the WSJ points out, we discovered the missed inspection ourselves, informed the FAA, and promptly completed the missed inspections in March 2007. The FAA approved our actions and considered the matter closed as of April 2007.
Again, the safety of our Customers, Employees, and aircraft is always our number one concern. Southwest has an excellent maintenance program, and this experience has helped improve the overall safety of the fleet.
Paula Berg
Southwest Airlines