American Airlines

14 Pages 3535 Words

devastating accident. Earlier in the month, pilots from different flights between Miami and Caracas experienced problems with this A300 Airbus. Pilots complained about oscillations and vibrations associated with the rudder and returned to the departure airport. Investigators determined from the crash that the airplane experienced turbulence before the rudder completely separated from the aircraft. Dozens of pilots have asked for this particular Airbus to be grounded because there is no way adequately to inspect the European-made planes’ tails, which are made of a nonmetallic composite material. These thousands of layers of carbon fibers and plastics can separate under excessive force. However, the French manufacturers say that the problems in the tail didn’t show any severe enough problems to weaken the tail. An American Airlines spokesman said the aircraft had had a maintenance check only the day before the crash. It had its last major overhaul in December 1999 and was scheduled for another in July of 2002. The question here is why was this A300 Airbus returned to service if there were instances prior to this accident that hinted that there is a problem with the aircraft. Mechanical problems raise concerns about the carrier’s safety and its maintenance program. Solution: After having at least three specific instances wit the A300 airbus, American Airlines obviously still ignored the persisting problem. American Airlines clearly states that safety is always a concern for their customers. When there are enough incidents and safety is very important, AMR should have taken precautions before an accident like flight 587 happened. The planes should have been grounded and carefully inspected to ensure the security of the passengers. Only after 260 people are killed is this problem significant enough to be handed over for investigation to the Federal Aviation Administration. The F.A.A. will soon order that certain Airbus models must be i...