If you think the safety-check fiasco that suddenly grounded nearly 3,000 flights in early April is a distant memory, you might want to think again. With increasingly vigilant inspections planned into the summer, travelers should expect the unexpected.
FAA audits will continue through June 30, and spokeswoman for the organization said that further cancellations can’t be ruled out. The crack-down has been a long time coming, but in many ways it seems to have caught airlines off guard, resulting in massive numbers of stranded travellers.
The stricter safety inspections and the airline industry’s collective surprise stems from a previously cozy relationship that went south following accusations that the FAA has been too lenient.
Flightglobal.com quotes Transportation Department inspector general Calvin Scovel who said: "What we have seen from the FAA on too many occasions is, you just put in a wink and nod instead of a demonstration of true will."
That’s a serious smack-down for a federal agency in charge of ensuring compliance with safety standards, and it left the FAA with something to prove. The airlines have been put on alert, but they seem to be waiting for things to chill out, all the while complaining that the FAA is inconsistent, unreasonable and mean.
In the struggle between the FAA and the airlines, business travellers will surely be the ones grounded.