WASHINGTON—The FAA plans to implement new training and several revised processes that ensure issues flagged by its maintenance inspectors are both accurately identified and properly addressed through safety systems, a U.S. Transportation Department Office of Inspector General (OIG) report said.
The OIG flagged several issues in an audit of how FAA oversees American Airlines’ handling of corrective actions linked to maintenance problems flagged by the carrier or its inspectors and management of its safety management system (SMS).
Among the OIG’s findings in the Oct. 20 report: FAA inspectors did not accurately identify the root cause of a maintenance issue in 171 of 185 issues from March 2016 to March 2020 examined for the report, or 91%. Human factors were cited as the root cause in 121 issues, even though FAA guidance directs certificate holders to dig deeper and identify specific causal factors.
In one instance, all items on a structures-repair task card were marked complete, even though some steps did not apply to the job, OIG said. The mechanic who signed off could not explain why steps were marked as done when they weren’t. The FAA “did not press” American on the issue, OIG said.
Part of the issue is a lack of sufficient training, OIG said. Five of 18 maintenance inspectors interviewed by the OIG for the report said they had no formal training on root-cause analysis.
“Ineffective root cause analysis and the associated corrective actions may have contributed to a number of repetitive non-compliances at American Airlines,” the OIG report said. “Based on our review, the most frequent non-compliances were maintenance recordkeeping errors and omissions, insufficient maintenance training, and improperly completed maintenance.”
The audit also determined FAA does not ensure American closes out compliance issues before completing corrective actions. The 185 issues examined generated 394 corrective actions, an OIG review of FAA data found. OIG said at least 20 were closed before American completed the required action.
FAA inspectors are permitted to close actions that are part of approved plans, so long as follow-up inspections are done to validate compliance. But issues with the FAA’s database make it difficult for inspectors to confirm if the follow-up inspections have been done, the audit found.
OIG recommended that the FAA improve root-cause analysis training for inspectors and develop links between compliance actions and required validation inspections to ensure the issues are addressed. OIG also urged the FAA to develop better SMS-evaluation training for inspectors. The agency concurred and plans to have new training and protocols in place by 2023, it said in a formal response to a draft of the report.
The two agencies disagree on several issues, including whether a new “team inspection” needs to be added for SMS oversight. OIG recommends one, while the FAA said some changes to its National Certificate Holder Evaluation Program, or CHEP, will address the findings. OIG also wants more details on how the FAA’s proposed training will lessen inspectors’ reliance on human factors as a root cause.
The OIG’s root-cause analysis findings are similar to results from similar audits of Southwest Airlines and Allegiant Air. OIG’s report on the Allegiant audit, released in December 2019, included a recommendation that review and, if necessary, modify its root-cause analysis training for inspectors. The FAA said the work would be done in 2020, but OIG still lists the recommendation as open.
Related Content
