Airlines Lax In Pilot Background Checks

The nation's airlines sometimes fail to check the safety records and qualifications of the pilots they hire, as required by federal law, according to a new congressional report.

Describing compliance with the 1997 law as "not always complete or timely," the General Accounting Office found lapses in the hiring processes of commercial air carriers.

The GAO, the investigative arm of Congress, concluded in a report released Tuesday that airlines were not requesting information from all three sources specified in the law because the number of requests to each varied.

Air carriers are required to obtain pilots' driving and flying records from the Federal Aviation Administration, the National Driver Register and other carriers.

Michael Wascom, spokesman for the Air Transport Association, said it's essential that airlines check pilots' backgrounds.

"We will continue to fulfill our obligations working cooperatively with the FAA and Transportation Department," Wascom said.

Congress passed the 1997 law after pilots who were at least partially responsible for seven deadly airline accidents were found to have had problems at previous jobs.

The December 1994 crash of an American Eagle flight in Morrisville, N.C., was caused by a pilot who incorrectly assumed an engine had failed and didn't follow proper procedures, the National Transportation Safety Board said. The pilot, his co-pilot and 13 passengers died; five passengers survived.

U.S. investigators said the pilot was hired by Flagship Air Carriers, operating as American Eagle, after being recommended for dismissal by another airline, Comair. Flagship was not aware of that recommendation or his training problems, investigators said.

The report also said air carriers sometimes fail to protect pilots' rights by notifying them of requests for their files and allowing them to review and correct them.

The GAO said the FAA should clarify guidelines about the content of pilot records and rules about retaining them. Pilots' rights should also be posted on FAA's Web site, and the agency should incorporate requirements for pilot records in its inspectors' training and handbooks, the GAO said.