American Airlines flew the wrong plane across the Pacific Ocean
American Airlines has launched an internal investigation into procedures after pilots mistakenly flew the wrong plane across the Pacific Ocean without proper certification.
The twin engine Airbus A321 was long into the flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu on August 31 when the major violation of US federal guidelines was recognised by an employee.
"When we noticed it, we immediately undertook an internal investigation, and we alerted the FAA," American Airlines spokesman Casey Norton said.
"We are checking our internal procedures, everything that led up to the departure. We are going to figure out what we can do better. We have gone back and made some changes to software systems."
The flight from the the US West Coast to Hawaii travels across the Pacific Ocean for the majority of the flight, meaning the airline is required to provide more safety equipment than other planes.
Providing extra oxygen tanks and a special fire suppression system in the cargo hold, the Airbus A321 is certified to fly on one engine for enough time to reach an alternate airport, according to Brian Sumers.
Norton emphasised that the plane that made the trip, an Airbus A321S, is the same plane as the one that was supposed to make it, an Airbus A321H, aside from having an "ETOPS" certification, which requires the plane to carry additional equipment.
"It has the same engine, same fuel tanks, same range," Norton told AFP, but, he said, the A321H has extra medical oxygen - different than the oxygen masks that drop from the ceiling - in case of an in-flight medical emergency and an additional fire-suppression canister.
He said the Federal Aviation Administration was "immediately notified" of the incident when the company realised it had happened and that they have revised their software to "properly identify the correct aircraft are operating the correct routes."
According to Sumers, who first reported the embarrassing error, the flight continued through to Hawaii before the airline cancelled the return flight and ferried the empty plane back to Los Angeles.
Morning news break – September 14
