Gulfstream - WSJ
05-21-2009, 01:51 PM
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05-21-2009, 01:53 PM
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$1.3m fine by FAA proposed against Gulfstream
May 21, 2009
Contact: Laura Brown
Phone: (202) 267-3883
FAA Proposes $1.3 Million Civil Penalty for Gulfstream International Airlines
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed a $1.3 million civil penalty from Florida-based Gulfstream International Airlines, Inc. for violations of the Federal Aviation Regulations.
The alleged violations include improper scheduling of flight crew duty time, and the installation of unapproved air conditioner compressors and improperly maintained vent blowers on the airline's fleet of 27 BE-1900-D aircraft.
An FAA review of the airline's electronic record-keeping system for tracking crew duty and rest time revealed that Gulfstream International did not accurately input the proper data from its manually generated hard-copy aircraft logbook records into the electronic system. The discrepancies resulted in scheduling crew members in excess of daily and weekly flight time limitations.
During a June 2008 inspection, the FAA determined that the airline had installed unapproved automotive air conditioner compressors on its aircraft between September 2006 and May 2008. Following the FAA inspection, the airline grounded all of the affected aircraft and replaced the units with approved aircraft air conditioner compressors.
In the course of a July 2008 inspection of Gulfstream International avionics and component shops in Fort Lauderdale, the FAA discovered that the airline had installed improperly maintained vent blowers on six planes between January 2008 and June 2008. Following that inspection, the airline replaced the blowers with properly maintained units.
Gulfstream International Airlines has 30 days from the receipt of the civil penalty letter to respond to the FAA.
05-21-2009, 05:28 PM
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05-22-2009, 10:04 AM
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Let the scapegoating begin. Typical CYA by the FAA. "No see...we're watching the airlines". When they take on Mesa, Republic, or someone with a broader impact on the industry, then I'll give them more credit. Picking on the little guy to make themselves look good.
05-26-2009, 01:25 PM
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And another article on Gulstream today....
By ANDY PASZTOR and SUSAN CAREY
Zuma Press Gulfstream International, flying as Continental Connection with planes including the 19-seat Beech 1900 turboprop, above, serves primarily destinations in Florida and the Bahamas. It also flies some routes out of Cleveland.
On Dec. 10, 2007, Kenny Edwards, then a captain with Gulfstream International Airlines, noticed that the collision-avoidance system on the Beech 1900 turboprop he was scheduled to fly was malfunctioning.
The system had helped the commuter aircraft narrowly avoid a midair collision with a private plane on the leg he had completed just hours earlier, from the Bahamas to West Palm Beach, Fla. He says he told airline management he wasn't "comfortable" flying another leg in and out of clouds at dusk if the equipment wasn't working properly, particularly at low altitudes, which are often crowded with small aircraft.
He was fired on the spot for insubordination. In a termination letter dated the following day and viewed by The Wall Street Journal, the airline's chief pilot at the time said the plane had been legal to operate and that the pilot's refusal to fly it delayed the departure for more than two hours "and inconvenienced our customers without just cause."
The details of that incident -- as alleged in a lawsuit and a Federal Aviation Administration "whistle-blower" complaint, both filed by Capt. Edwards -- are adding to the scrutiny of Gulfstream, a regional airline that operates out of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Gulfstream operates flights for Continental Airlines Inc. and other carriers, serving primarily Florida and the Bahamas.
On Monday, David Hackett, chief executive of the airline's parent company, Gulfstream International Group Inc., said, "no pilot that I am aware of has ever been fired" for refusing to fly an aircraft, adding that Gulfstream follows federal safety rules "to the letter." Mr. Hackett said Capt. Edwards was fired for previous poor job performance and "for basic insubordination" after refusing "to come into the chief pilot's office per company policy to discuss the situation." Capt. Edwards disputed that he had performed poorly and says he was punished for complaining about alleged safety issues.
A Continental spokeswoman said Monday that the company expects its partners to adhere to the highest safety standards. "We think it is appropriate that the FAA exercise this oversight," she said.
Today, Capt. Edwards still contends he did the right thing by refusing to take off. While the aircraft technically would have been legal based on minimum standards established by the airline and the FAA, he said late Monday, the specific conditions that night made the flight unwise. The darkness, worsening weather and other factors meant such a trip would have "peeled away layers and layers of safety" and unnecessarily exposed passengers and crew to midair hazards, according to Capt. Edwards.
In an interview, Capt. Edwards said that several mechanics had told him they were pressured to sign off on planes with known problems. "The culture seemed to be that you can get around the safety regulations," he said. Capt. Edwards's claims couldn't be independently verified.
In other recent interviews, several former and current Gulfstream pilots made allegations about planes flying with known defects and other unsafe operations. The turmoil at the airline also has affected management personnel. Lily Harvey, a former senior training manager who recently failed two flight tests, resigned as a captain from the airline and is now working as an instructor in ground school, according to Gulfstream. Ms. Harvey couldn't be reached to comment.
Last week, the FAA proposed a $1.3 million penalty against Gulfstream for alleged faulty record keeping and substandard aircraft maintenance. In one instance, the FAA alleges, the airline installed automobile air-conditioner parts on some of its planes. Congressional investigators, who conducted their own probe into the airline, allege the company falsified flight-time records and forced crews to fly more hours than federal rules permit. Both the FAA and the congressional investigators interviewed Capt. Edwards as part of their inquiries. The Continental spokeswoman said, "We are reviewing the proposed enforcement action."
On Friday, Mr. Hackett disputed the assertions made by the FAA and congressional investigators. "No records were ever falsified, period," he said in an email. He said there were "extremely isolated incidents" of schedulers making mistakes and allowing pilots to fly over required limits. The CEO said he believes Gulfstream will be cleared on a majority of the items under FAA scrutiny.
There has been heightened concern about safety at regional airlines since the Feb. 12 crash of a Continental Connection flight near Buffalo, N.Y., in which 50 people died. That flight was operated by regional carrier Colgan Air Inc., a unit of Pinnacle Airlines Corp. Many regional carriers fly under the flags of major airlines and ferry passengers to their hubs from more remote locations.
Investigators say they believe the crash near Buffalo of the Bombardier Q400 turboprop was caused by mistakes committed by relatively inexperienced pilots who hadn't been adequately trained on crucial emergency equipment.
Gulfstream plays an important role within the regional-airline sector. Though it is relatively small, flying 630,000 passengers last year, many young pilots work there or train at its affiliated training academy in order to gain experience before landing permanent jobs at various regional carriers.
Capt. Marvin Renslow, the pilot of the Continental Connection flight that crashed in February, attended flight school there and also had worked at Gulfstream International. Pilots in the two previous fatal U.S. commuter crashes -- both caused by pilot error -- also spent time at either Gulfstream International Airlines or Gulfstream's training operations, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. Mr. Hackett said Capt. Renslow's record at Gulfstream was uneventful and he passed all his simulator proficiency tests and check rides.
Capt. Edwards, the 43-year-old fired Gulfstream captain, has flown for two other airlines since becoming a commercial pilot eight years ago. In an interview, he said he refused in October 2007 to take a Gulfstream plane that lacked operational ground-steering and full instrument-landing systems. Capt. Edwards said the company didn't punish him for that incident. These claims were also detailed in the lawsuit he filed against the company in September in state court in Broward County, Fla.
Capt. Edwards said other Gulfstream pilots found emergency doors that couldn't be opened and alleged that certain crew flight-time records were falsified to force pilots to fly extra hours. "They pressured pilots to do something that was unsafe and illegal," he alleged in the interview.
Several other current and former Gulfstream pilots interviewed by The Wall Street Journal also allege that crews were pressured to fly despite malfunctioning safety equipment and known problems such as fuel leaks and inoperative fire-detection equipment.
In his response Monday, Mr. Hackett reiterated there "are very clear rules" followed by Gulfstream that "no airplane can be flown legally with required equipment inoperative."
Ms. Harvey, the former senior training manager, resigned from the airline "when she failed the second check ride," according to Mr. Hackett, and was allowed to go back to work as a ground instructor because she "was considered good at it." John Horton, the airline's current chief pilot, also is expected to lose his job, according to current and former pilots. Gulfstream said it is "currently in discussions" with Mr. Horton about "his future with the company." Mr. Horton didn't return a call seeking comment late Monday.
Gulfstream was founded in 1988 by a former Eastern Airlines pilot as an on-demand charter carrier serving Florida, Cuba and the Bahamas. It grew into scheduled flights in 1990 and signed a code-share arrangement with UAL Corp.'s United Airlines in 1994. In 1997, it signed a major code-share agreement with Continental, which that runs until 2012. Continental's flight code is on all Gulfstream's scheduled flights and Continental OnePass frequent fliers receive miles for their Gulfstream trips. Continental also owns warrants that would enable it to acquire up to 10% of Gulfstream International Airlines.
Gulfstream operates a fleet of 19-seat aircraft, has more than 500 employees and Mr. Hackett, the CEO, is a former Continental executive. In filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company indicates that other airlines employ pilots trained by its training affiliate, called Gulfstream Training Academy. "In the event of an accident caused by an academy graduate, it is possible the academy could be named as a defendant in any lawsuit," according to one recent filing. "There are no assurances our insurance policy will adequately cover potential losses from such claims."
Write to Andy Pasztor at [email protected] and Susan Carey at [email protected]
By ANDY PASZTOR and SUSAN CAREY
Zuma Press Gulfstream International, flying as Continental Connection with planes including the 19-seat Beech 1900 turboprop, above, serves primarily destinations in Florida and the Bahamas. It also flies some routes out of Cleveland.
On Dec. 10, 2007, Kenny Edwards, then a captain with Gulfstream International Airlines, noticed that the collision-avoidance system on the Beech 1900 turboprop he was scheduled to fly was malfunctioning.
The system had helped the commuter aircraft narrowly avoid a midair collision with a private plane on the leg he had completed just hours earlier, from the Bahamas to West Palm Beach, Fla. He says he told airline management he wasn't "comfortable" flying another leg in and out of clouds at dusk if the equipment wasn't working properly, particularly at low altitudes, which are often crowded with small aircraft.
He was fired on the spot for insubordination. In a termination letter dated the following day and viewed by The Wall Street Journal, the airline's chief pilot at the time said the plane had been legal to operate and that the pilot's refusal to fly it delayed the departure for more than two hours "and inconvenienced our customers without just cause."
The details of that incident -- as alleged in a lawsuit and a Federal Aviation Administration "whistle-blower" complaint, both filed by Capt. Edwards -- are adding to the scrutiny of Gulfstream, a regional airline that operates out of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Gulfstream operates flights for Continental Airlines Inc. and other carriers, serving primarily Florida and the Bahamas.
On Monday, David Hackett, chief executive of the airline's parent company, Gulfstream International Group Inc., said, "no pilot that I am aware of has ever been fired" for refusing to fly an aircraft, adding that Gulfstream follows federal safety rules "to the letter." Mr. Hackett said Capt. Edwards was fired for previous poor job performance and "for basic insubordination" after refusing "to come into the chief pilot's office per company policy to discuss the situation." Capt. Edwards disputed that he had performed poorly and says he was punished for complaining about alleged safety issues.
A Continental spokeswoman said Monday that the company expects its partners to adhere to the highest safety standards. "We think it is appropriate that the FAA exercise this oversight," she said.
Today, Capt. Edwards still contends he did the right thing by refusing to take off. While the aircraft technically would have been legal based on minimum standards established by the airline and the FAA, he said late Monday, the specific conditions that night made the flight unwise. The darkness, worsening weather and other factors meant such a trip would have "peeled away layers and layers of safety" and unnecessarily exposed passengers and crew to midair hazards, according to Capt. Edwards.
In an interview, Capt. Edwards said that several mechanics had told him they were pressured to sign off on planes with known problems. "The culture seemed to be that you can get around the safety regulations," he said. Capt. Edwards's claims couldn't be independently verified.
In other recent interviews, several former and current Gulfstream pilots made allegations about planes flying with known defects and other unsafe operations. The turmoil at the airline also has affected management personnel. Lily Harvey, a former senior training manager who recently failed two flight tests, resigned as a captain from the airline and is now working as an instructor in ground school, according to Gulfstream. Ms. Harvey couldn't be reached to comment.
Last week, the FAA proposed a $1.3 million penalty against Gulfstream for alleged faulty record keeping and substandard aircraft maintenance. In one instance, the FAA alleges, the airline installed automobile air-conditioner parts on some of its planes. Congressional investigators, who conducted their own probe into the airline, allege the company falsified flight-time records and forced crews to fly more hours than federal rules permit. Both the FAA and the congressional investigators interviewed Capt. Edwards as part of their inquiries. The Continental spokeswoman said, "We are reviewing the proposed enforcement action."
On Friday, Mr. Hackett disputed the assertions made by the FAA and congressional investigators. "No records were ever falsified, period," he said in an email. He said there were "extremely isolated incidents" of schedulers making mistakes and allowing pilots to fly over required limits. The CEO said he believes Gulfstream will be cleared on a majority of the items under FAA scrutiny.
There has been heightened concern about safety at regional airlines since the Feb. 12 crash of a Continental Connection flight near Buffalo, N.Y., in which 50 people died. That flight was operated by regional carrier Colgan Air Inc., a unit of Pinnacle Airlines Corp. Many regional carriers fly under the flags of major airlines and ferry passengers to their hubs from more remote locations.
Investigators say they believe the crash near Buffalo of the Bombardier Q400 turboprop was caused by mistakes committed by relatively inexperienced pilots who hadn't been adequately trained on crucial emergency equipment.
Gulfstream plays an important role within the regional-airline sector. Though it is relatively small, flying 630,000 passengers last year, many young pilots work there or train at its affiliated training academy in order to gain experience before landing permanent jobs at various regional carriers.
Capt. Marvin Renslow, the pilot of the Continental Connection flight that crashed in February, attended flight school there and also had worked at Gulfstream International. Pilots in the two previous fatal U.S. commuter crashes -- both caused by pilot error -- also spent time at either Gulfstream International Airlines or Gulfstream's training operations, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. Mr. Hackett said Capt. Renslow's record at Gulfstream was uneventful and he passed all his simulator proficiency tests and check rides.
Capt. Edwards, the 43-year-old fired Gulfstream captain, has flown for two other airlines since becoming a commercial pilot eight years ago. In an interview, he said he refused in October 2007 to take a Gulfstream plane that lacked operational ground-steering and full instrument-landing systems. Capt. Edwards said the company didn't punish him for that incident. These claims were also detailed in the lawsuit he filed against the company in September in state court in Broward County, Fla.
Capt. Edwards said other Gulfstream pilots found emergency doors that couldn't be opened and alleged that certain crew flight-time records were falsified to force pilots to fly extra hours. "They pressured pilots to do something that was unsafe and illegal," he alleged in the interview.
Several other current and former Gulfstream pilots interviewed by The Wall Street Journal also allege that crews were pressured to fly despite malfunctioning safety equipment and known problems such as fuel leaks and inoperative fire-detection equipment.
In his response Monday, Mr. Hackett reiterated there "are very clear rules" followed by Gulfstream that "no airplane can be flown legally with required equipment inoperative."
Ms. Harvey, the former senior training manager, resigned from the airline "when she failed the second check ride," according to Mr. Hackett, and was allowed to go back to work as a ground instructor because she "was considered good at it." John Horton, the airline's current chief pilot, also is expected to lose his job, according to current and former pilots. Gulfstream said it is "currently in discussions" with Mr. Horton about "his future with the company." Mr. Horton didn't return a call seeking comment late Monday.
Gulfstream was founded in 1988 by a former Eastern Airlines pilot as an on-demand charter carrier serving Florida, Cuba and the Bahamas. It grew into scheduled flights in 1990 and signed a code-share arrangement with UAL Corp.'s United Airlines in 1994. In 1997, it signed a major code-share agreement with Continental, which that runs until 2012. Continental's flight code is on all Gulfstream's scheduled flights and Continental OnePass frequent fliers receive miles for their Gulfstream trips. Continental also owns warrants that would enable it to acquire up to 10% of Gulfstream International Airlines.
Gulfstream operates a fleet of 19-seat aircraft, has more than 500 employees and Mr. Hackett, the CEO, is a former Continental executive. In filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company indicates that other airlines employ pilots trained by its training affiliate, called Gulfstream Training Academy. "In the event of an accident caused by an academy graduate, it is possible the academy could be named as a defendant in any lawsuit," according to one recent filing. "There are no assurances our insurance policy will adequately cover potential losses from such claims."
Write to Andy Pasztor at [email protected] and Susan Carey at [email protected]
05-26-2009, 01:49 PM
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I disagree. In my opinion the schools that take you from "zero flight time to the right seat of an airliner in 6 months" are the BIGGEST problem. Pilots don't learn the basic fundamentals that they need to safely fly a transport aircraft. I am not saying Gulfstream is to blame for the Colgan, Comair, and Pinnacle crashes. I am saying that the training these pilots received at Gulfstream is a definite part of the accident chain. Gulfstream is just one of several schools that offer this type of training.
05-26-2009, 03:55 PM
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