FAA Probes Whether Pilot Sought to Cover Up Mistake
By ANDY PASZTOR
Regulators are investigating whether the head of flight operations at Trans States Airlines forgot to turn on one engine of a commuter jet while preparing for take off, then allegedly tried to cover up the mistake, according to government and industry officials.
The probe prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to temporarily bar Michael White, the airline's former chief pilot and currently its director of flight operations, from flying passengers. He has since been reinstated after passing a proficiency test, but the incident has prompted high-level concern inside the FAA, these officials said.
The agency is continuing to look at whether Mr. White tried to hide a mistake, and whether other airline managers tried to mislead regulators after the incident, according to these officials.
Mr. White has said that the engine shut down on its own, and the airline supports his position, according to people familiar with the details. Mr. White declined to comment for this article.
Spokesmen for the FAA and the airline, which operates flights for United Airlines and US Airways, confirmed the investigation into the incident but wouldn't elaborate.
"We have been fully cooperative with the FAA," the airline spokesman said.
The incident initially attracted FAA interest in what officials thought was another example of pilot distraction. In the past six months, at least one other crew flying for a different commuter carrier forgot to turn on both engines before starting to rev up for takeoff. Afterward, that airline revised its pre-flight checklist.
But the Trans States investigation has taken an unusual turn. The FAA has opened an enforcement case and is investigating allegations by other pilots that Mr. White tried to cover up his mistake. Some Trans States pilots also have told investigators that they felt airline management tried to pressure them or intimidate them to back up Mr. White's version of events, according to people familiar with the investigation.
Labor-management tensions at the airline are already high, with the pilots' union locked in stalled contract negotiations with the airline.
"We don't believe that any member of management has tried to dissuade pilots from telling anything" to the FAA, said the spokesman for the airline, a unit of Trans States Holdings Inc. of Bridgeton, Mo. He added that the FAA has "never told us there was any kind of investigation involving intimidation or coercion" of pilots.
FAA officials said allegations of a cover-up, if true, are disturbing because the regulator expects pilots and airline managers to promptly and honestly report safety lapses—even if they are serious—so other crews and carriers can benefit from lessons learned. If Mr. White or other members of management are found to have attempted to cover up a mistake, the airline could face financial penalties.
In March, Mr. White and another senior Trans States pilot were at the controls of a two-engine Embraer jet getting ready to take off from Washington Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. As the aircraft started to rev up, cockpit warnings that only one of the two engines was running prompted the pilots to pull off the runway and taxi back to the gate.
Mr. White wrote in the logbook—and told mechanics and fellow pilots at the time—that the engine had shut down on its own, according to people familiar with the details.
Two other Trans States pilots who were passengers on the plane concluded from sounds they heard that only one engine had been started up, they later told investigators, according to people familiar with the investigation. The plane's maintenance records also showed that one engine had never been started up, according to these people.
Shortly after the incident, a senior management pilot told one of the pilots in the back of the plane that maintenance data backed up Mr. White's version of events, according to a person familiar with the investigation. The pilot told investigators he interpreted that as indirect pressure to support Mr. White's statements, this person said.
The airline asked all four pilots who were passengers on the plane for copies of written statements they had submitted to the agency, according to people familiar with the investigation. Two of the pilots told investigators they felt that was another subtle form of intimidation, these people said.
The company removed the two men from flying duties before the FAA took the same action, according to people familiar with the case, and gave them additional training. The FAA required them to pass a proficiency test, which they did. Both pilots have returned to flying status. The other aviator is a senior pilot who checks the proficiency of other Trans States pilots during recurrent training sessions.
Trans States flies more than three million passengers annually, using 27 regional jets to serve 46 cities. Trans States Holdings also controls GoJet Airlines LLC, which flies 25 Bombardier regional jets for United Express, operating out of hubs at Chicago, Denver and Dulles.
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