The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration is intensifying its monitoring of United Airlines (UAL.O) to ensure the carrier's adherence to safety regulations, prompted by a string of safety incidents.
In a statement to Reuters on Saturday, the agency announced it will commence a comprehensive assessment to verify the Chicago-based airline "is complying with safety regulations; identifying hazards and mitigating risk; and effectively managing safety."
"Certification activities in process may be allowed to continue, but future projects may be delayed based on findings from oversight."
A source confirmed a report from Bloomberg News indicating that the FAA might withhold approval for customers to use United's new aircraft or new routes. The FAA refrained from providing a comment.
United stated on Friday that the FAA would heighten its scrutiny of the airline in response to over half a dozen safety incidents in recent weeks.
A United aircraft landed in Oregon without an external panel, triggering an investigation by the FAA. In Houston, a Boeing 737 MAX from its fleet veered onto the grass. Additionally, a United-operated Boeing 777-200 en route to Japan experienced a tire loss after departing from San Francisco and had to divert to Los Angeles, where it safely landed.
United's corporate safety vice president, Sasha Johnson, mentioned in a memo on Friday that FAA presence in their operation will increase over the next few weeks as they start reviewing work processes, manuals, and facilities.
Johnson's memo stated, these incidents "have rightfully caused us to pause and evaluate whether there is anything we can and should do differently," emphasizing that the airline values the FAA's input.
FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker informed Reuters on Tuesday that the agency would intensify its scrutiny of United in light of the recent incidents, noting that United CEO Scott Kirby "knows we're going to be engaging a little more closely with them as we look into these."
