Watchdog says FAA, Southwest ties too close

By John Crawley

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) oversight of Southwest Airlines Co (LUV.N) maintenance was so cozy the agency allowed the carrier to violate safety rules repeatedly for years, a government watchdog said on Thursday.

Calvin Scovel, inspector general of the Transportation Department, told a House of Representatives Transportation Committee the problem likely extends to other airlines and suggests the FAA has failed to protect employees who report safety problems from retaliation.

"FAA oversight lapses at the local and national level allowed weakness in Southwest's maintenance program to go undetected for years," Scovel said.

He also suggested more broadly that the FAA "relies too heavily" on a program that permits airlines to voluntarily disclose safety issues. This, Scovel said, "promotes a pattern of excessive leniency" at the expense of enforcement.

Southwest officials said the airline is operated safely. The FAA has described the problem as an isolated incident that has been dealt with.

Scovel said the FAA regional office in Dallas, which is responsible for Southwest oversight, "developed an overly collaborative relationship" with the carrier.

This allowed Southwest to repeatedly self-disclose violations of FAA safety directives without the agency following up, which is required for the carrier to avoid a fine, Scovel said.

Southwest, according to Scovel, has violated four different safety directives eight times since December 2006, including five this year alone.

"FAA's oversight in this case appears to allow, rather than mitigate, recurring safety violations," Scovel said.

The findings cast new and independent light on what has been described by Transportation Committee Chairman James Oberstar as the worst example of aviation safety oversight in recent memory.

FAA and Southwest whistle-blowers testified about sloppy paperwork and incomplete procedures. They said their concerns were dismissed or not fully investigated and alleged threats and other retaliation for speaking out.

One FAA manager said he was told by a superior to destroy notes on his concerns once Oberstar's committee began to investigate.

"It's misfeasance, malfeasance bordering on corruption. If this were a grand jury proceeding I think it would result in an indictment," Oberstar said.

FAA safety chief Nicholas Sabatini expressed "disappointment and regret" over the FAA's "failure to carry out" its responsibilities.

"What is clear, and what should have been clear to all of our inspectors is that continued noncompliance after voluntary reporting is not permitted under any circumstances," Sabatini said.