The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is reportedly considering taking action against United Airlines because of a series of recent mishaps.
“Due to recent safety events, the FAA is increasing oversight of United Airlines to ensure that it is complying with safety regulations; identifying hazards and mitigating risk; and effectively managing safety,” an FAA spokesperson said in a statement.
“Certification activities in process may be allowed to continue, but future projects may be delayed based on findings from oversight,” the spokesperson added.
According to CBS News, actions the FAA may take against United include “barring United from launching new routes that it has not yet begun selling tickets for” and “allow[ing] the carrier to continue taking possession of new aircraft — but pausing its ability to introduce the new planes into revenue service, which refers to commercial flights that carry paying passengers.”
This comes days after Administrator Michael Whitaker told NBC News in an interview that he’d recently spoken with United CEO Scott Kirby about the recent mishaps.
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“I know that they’re taking some heightened measures, and looking at these issues,” he said. “We’re going to look at each one of these incidents and see if we see a pattern. He’s concerned. I’m concerned. No one likes to see this spike of incidents, so we’re both doing our jobs to look at where those risks might be at.”
United’s vice president of corporate safety, Sasha Johnson, reportedly acknowledged that the FAA is taking action in a letter she sent this past Friday to company employees.
“Over the next several weeks, we will begin to see more of an FAA presence in our operation as they begin to review some of our work processes, manuals and facilities,” she wrote.
“As part of this effort, the FAA will also pause a variety of certification activities for a period of time. Those activities will differ depending on the work group and we will learn more from the FAA about that soon,” she added.
The FAA is working with United to evaluate various aspects related to safety — and will pause some certification of United planes, products, etc. for the time being. pic.twitter.com/46ETjlZCmb
— David Slotnick (@David_Slotnick) March 22, 2024
The recent mishaps include one plane suffering a hard landing, another plane almost hitting the ocean, one plane having a wheel come off mid-flight, and another plane having a panel come off mid-flight.
The one factor linking all these incidents is the type of plane involved: A Boeing. In fact, Boeing-related incidents have become so common that some fliers are now purposefully avoiding all Boeing flights.
“I just can’t step on that plane,” traveler Leila Amineddoleh, an art lawyer who lives in New Jersey, told NBC News. “Even if the chance of getting hurt on a Boeing flight, even with all these incidents, is slim.”
She’s so committed to this that she “recently asked for a refund for upcoming flights she had booked to Miami and Europe, and bought replacement tickets on Airbus flights, despite a layover in her new Europe itinerary.”
“It’s an inconvenience,” she said of the change in plans. “But I’m not going to feel guilty, because I think [my daughter’s] safety is more important than fatigue.”
Some nervous travelers are changing their flights to avoid Boeing airplanes https://t.co/LkYmLABTs2 via @nbcnews Click on link for details. Passengers avoid Boeing aircraft!
— Allan Foxall (@AirAcademy) March 24, 2024
Stephanie Walls, an IT project manager from Houston, also complained to NBC News about Boeing.
In an interview with the network, she said she recently switched out an upcoming Boeing flight to Philadelphia with an Airbus one instead precisely because she doesn’t feel Boeing has done enough to address recent mishaps of its own.
“We really need to see that change being put in place pretty urgently,” she said.
Adrian Rojas, a Chicago-based communications consultant who’s dreadfully afraid of Boeing’s Max series, recently changed a flight to an Airbus to avoid it.
“I just know that it’s something I would be thinking about a lot right as I get on the plane, so I’m just trying to limit that for my mental health,” he said.
And last up is Leonyce Moses, a Virgina-based consultant who reportedly generally loves to travel but not so much on Boeing flights.
“She had to pay about $70 extra to change an upcoming Phoenix trip to be on an Airbus instead of a Boeing plane, but ‘it was worth it for my safety,’ she said,” according to NBC News.
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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