Awesome comment…
Posted by Blue Eyed Buddhist on October 9th, 2008
Today’s post was a comment attached to yesterday’s post. It’s so good, it deserves to stand alone as a testament to what we’ve been yammering on about, here at the Follies, for a couple of years now.
Plus, it’s a cheap way for me to avoid writing something for today. But still, it’s a really great comment. I broke it up a little bit more for readability, threw in a comma or two, and boldfaced a few sections that I thought were particularly important for emphasis, but otherwise it’s from “CSI Lies”, who is apparently a reader but not someone we’ve heard from much in the comments section. Hopefully they write more often- we need more from other-than-ATC in the FAA.
I was an inspector assigned to large repair stations that performed outsource maintenance. The IG only scratched the surface of airline outsourcing.
Another problem with oversight of repair station is that the overlap of surveillance when the two parts of the FAA would assume the other was inspecting. The FAA would assign one inspector (CMO) that would look at the particular airlines aircraft in the facility and another local inspector (FSDO) that would be responsible for the repair station.
The trouble came from the disconnect created by the two sets of inspectors. Each had their own set of responsibilities and if a problem was found across the responsibility, it was almost impossible to document discrepancies. The two sets of inspectors had completely different computer reporting programs that are incompatible with each other.
What added insult to injury is that the Certificate Management Office (CMO) would take credit for an inspection of their carrier if an inspection was done by the local Inspector of the repair station. This was not right, because local inspectors don’t look at the same things as a CMO inspectors are required to.
The result was the airlines had less oversight than was reported to the IG. Then there were the budget cuts for travel. As a result the local inspectors may only spend 4 or 5 hours per year at any given repair station.
Then there was the issue of the home airline FAA inspectors simply dismissing the safety findings from the repair station inspectors as not being credible or worthy of their attention. This was very apparent when dealing with inspectors from the big nine. I surmised it was because some air carrier people looked down on what they called “FSDO pukes” who usually came from the general aviation field.
In the end the IG report only scratched the surface.
So how can they (FAA Management) get away with saying that this is the safest system in the world? Easy, they understand the system. We aren’t having the big crashes now because it takes time for the safety systems (that were put in place by all of the trained inspectors that are now being forced out) to break down enough to have an accident.
The managers in the FAA are hoping to cash in on the system long enough for the government to remove unions, and get rid of older, more costly employees. By the time the accidents begin to happen, the managers will be long gone and forgotten, and the current administration would have spent the money meant for the FAA on what they wanted to. (Contractors maybe?)
October 9th, 2008 at 4:49 am
Excellent commentary.
I believe one of the reasons we haven’t yet seen another “big crash” is the level of safety inherently built into modern aircraft.
Modern airliners are designed from the ground up with redundant systems. Two or more engines, each of which is fully capable of keeping the aircraft aloft. Three redundant hydraulic systems. Computer systems that will do their utmost to keep you from flying yourself into the ground. TCAS systems. You really have to work hard to crash a modern Boeing, Embraer, Bombardier, or Airbus, and even then there’s usually extenuating circumstances. Most of the major crashes over the past several years, such as COMAir in Lexington or the TAM A320 crash last year, were strictly human error.
Even if one of those offshore maintenance shops screws the pooch and an engine drops parts during takeoff, it probably won’t turn into a fiery crash. It would have to be a truly catastrophic failure of multiple systems at the same time – engines, hydraulic, flight controls – in order to bring the airplane down, like AAL191 or UAL232. And the chances of that are almost nil, barring a fire or exterior damage (like the Concorde crash, caused by FOD).
The news jumps on flashy incidents like that Jet Blue A320 that touched down at LAX with the bad nose gear. Sparks and a little fire make a great show. However, you’ll never hear about the hydraulic failures or the engine failures because there’s no spectacle to it. The crew runs through their checklists, shuts the bad engine, declares an emergency, and lands. It’s a silent incident, since the passengers’ lives were at risk, but the crew and the design of the airplane got them back on the ground safely.
However, because no one got hurt, both the airline and the FAA can simply sweep those types of incidents under the rug. Then they can just continue on their cost-saving, safety-reducing ways.
October 9th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
same agency, same story, different day.
October 9th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
Every day leading up to several hundred deaths: “Safety was never compromised.”
Day after the accident: “It’s too soon to reach any conclusion.”
Hearing on the topic: “No one above the first level of management had any idea.”
Six to twelve months later: “Welcome to [insert contractor's name here], Mister/Madam Administrator.”
October 9th, 2008 at 8:22 pm
Note:
FAA decides to move forward with slot auctions, even though they have been ruled illegal.
See the story at:
http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=41166&dcn=todaysnews
It’s the looting of America in the final days before Mary Peters is replaced.
Ruled illegal. But they go ahead anyway.
October 10th, 2008 at 1:09 am
Congratulations to Senator Obama and his campaign. Looks like a landslide victory in November. I use to think Jane Garvey was pretty cool. Maybe she’ll be the new Secretary of Transportation.