American Airlines pilots union warns of "significant spike" in safety issues

In a informing to American Airlines pilots, their union, nan Allied Pilots Association (APA), says it's seen "a important spike successful safety- and maintenance-related problems successful our operation."

The national claims that among nan "problematic trends" it's been search are devices near successful instrumentality wheels, an expanding number of collisions betwixt craft while they're being towed, an expanding number of items near successful nan information area adjacent pitchy bridges and "pressure to return craft to statement work to support on-time capacity owed to a deficiency of spares."

CBS News obtained pictures of a hammer successful a instrumentality good that nan APA says was recovered successful an Airbus A319 connected March 25 astatine Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport earlier Flight 1654 departed for Cedar Rapids, Iowa. According to nan APA, nan flight's first serviceman discovered it during his pre-flight walkaround and notified nan captain. The skipper called maintenance, who successful move inspected nan craft and recovered a "Channellock style pliers and a screwdriver besides located wrong nan instrumentality well." The national says location were nary unfastened attraction actions erstwhile nan instrumentality was found.

A hammer is seen being held by an American Airlines aviator after, nan carrier's pilots national says, it was discovered successful an Airbus A319 connected March 25 astatine Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport earlier nan formation near for Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Allied Pilots Association via CBS News

In a connection to national members Monday, APA President Capt. Ed Sicher says, "We met pinch (American's) elder guidance earlier this period to talk nan operational hazards we person identified. ... We now person management's afloat attention. We secured management's committedness to impact nan national earlier successful nan information consequence appraisal (SRA) process, and we are likewise seeking a committedness that APA will person a spot astatine nan array for nan full value assurance process. ... Management's first consequence to our concerns was encouraging."

American, which is based successful Fort Worth, Texas, said, "Safety astatine immoderate hose is simply a shared ngo and it's particularly existent astatine American. Our robust information programme is guided by our industry-leading information guidance system" that  includes collaborating pinch regulators and its unions.

While not commenting straight connected nan issues raised by nan APA, nan Federal Aviation Administration said it "requires each U.S. airlines to have Safety Management Systems (SMS) through which they identify, show and reside imaginable hazards early connected earlier they go superior problems."

Complaints astir mechanics being pressured to quickly return planes to work aren't caller astatine American, as CBS News reported successful 2019.

United Airlines is presently nan taxable of an FAA audit aft a bid of concerning incidents that included a instrumentality falling disconnected a Boeing 777 arsenic it was taking disconnected from San Francisco and an aerodynamic panel that flew disconnected a 737 during a formation from San Francisco to Medford, Oregon. 

"While United Airlines is presently nether nationalist and authorities scrutiny, it could conscionable arsenic easy beryllium American Airlines," nan APA memo says. 

The national information committee urged pilots not to unreserved aliases beryllium intimidated "and don't beryllium pressured into doing thing that doesn't walk nan 'smell test.' Just because it's ineligible doesn't make it safe."

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