More fliers stuck at O'Hare
Aerospace engineers Kyungpyo Kim and Wanbo Liu spent the week with other experts envisioning the bold, new future of air and space travel at a conference in Schaumburg.
Thursday, they came down to earth at O'Hare International Airport.
The two University of Kansas graduate students joined thousands of American Airlines passengers temporarily stranded by safety concerns about wiring in MD-80 planes.
With Congress breathing down the neck of the Federal Aviation Administration and the agency increasing its vigilance over airlines, more misery could be in store for passengers, experts say.
Already, Delta, Alaska Airlines and Midwest Airlines this week voluntarily grounded MD-80 flights to examine wiring again.
For American, it was the third day of dysfunction at O'Hare and across the country as the airline re-inspected its fleet under the eyes of the FAA.
More than 930 MD-80 flights were canceled Thursday, including about 123 at O'Hare. Today, the airline anticipates grounding approximately 570 flights with more than 80 in Chicago.
With today's cancellations, American will have grounded nearly 2,500 flights since Tuesday, more than one in every three American flights over that period.
O'Hare's Terminal 3, which serves American, was relatively calm Thursday afternoon as anxious fliers scanned departure boards that showed a mixture of on-time and canceled flights.
Hurrying to a ticket agent, Kim and Liu discussed their limited options.
"Our hotel is full, our rental car is due and we have no place to go," Liu said.
The two ended up getting a new flight to Kansas by way of Minneapolis.
"It's good enough," Liu said.
March started a season of discontent for air travelers after the FAA sought to fine Southwest Airlines $10 million for missing inspections of fatigue cracks in its 737s.
That discovery sparked a safety audit by the agency that led American, Delta Airlines and United Airlines to pull flights in order to check for potential problems.
Recently, the FAA rechecked American's MD-80s and found 15 out of 19 not in compliance, causing this week's debacle that's affected about 250,000 people so far.
The airline has spent the past few days apologizing and offering reimbursements for hotel stays and travel vouchers. Fliers are urged to check AA.com before heading to the airport.
Meanwhile Congress is weighing in on the crisis
"The FAA has not enforced the regulations on inspections and maintenance of airplanes," said U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski, a Western Springs Democrat.
"The FAA in general has dropped the ball," said Lipinski, who sits on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that's put the agency on the hot seat.
Beleaguered FAA leaders argue it's safer than ever to fly.
"The FAA's commitment to improving safety and extending the excellent safety record we are currently experiencing is our No. 1 priority," Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety Nicholas Sabatini told a Senate Committee this week.
American's mechanics' union jumped into the fray, stating Thursday that the MD-80s are safe and criticizing the FAA for continually revising its safety directives.
Conversely, members of the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association blasted airlines for outsourcing plane maintenance instead of in-house workers.
This means it's difficult for the FAA to keep track of work conducted by foreign companies, AMFA National Director Stephen MacFarlane contends.
"The solution is to fully fund the FAA," he said.
FAA officials countered that inspectors do travel with airlines and monitor work outside the country.
Northwestern University Transportation Center expert Aaron Gellman conceded that "FAA leadership has been weaker than it should have been in respect to safety."
But it's not as if the industry wants to lose passengers' confidence, he noted.
"Good safety is good business," Gellman said. "The airlines do an excellent job of maintaining safety standards."