SEATTLE -- Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air are facing more than $650,000 in fines by the Federal Aviation Administration for allegedly failing safety and maintenance regulations over the past two years.
The FAA has proposed $445,125 in civil penalties against Horizon, claiming the carrier did not comply with an airworthiness directive on one of its Bombadier Dash-8-400s.
The directive was issued on March 17, 2011, ordering Horizon to inspect for cracked or corroded engine nacelle fittings on its Dash 8s. The nacelles were to be inspected every 300 operating hours and repaired as needed. However, the FAA said Horizon operated the aircraft 45 times within one week when it had accumulated more than 300 hours of flight time since its last inspection.
The FAA is also proposing $210,000 in fines against Alaska Airlines for allegedly failing to properly document and tag deactivated systems and equipment before making repairs on six of its Boeing 737s.
The incidents happened between June 19, 2010 and January 13, 2011. The procedures are safety measures to protect technicians during maintenance and to prevent damage to the aircraft.
Both airlines, which are operated by Alaska Air, have 30 days to respond to the allegations.
