Southwest Airlines Planes Make Contact at Burbank Airport
The two planes bumped into each other, but no injuries were reported. Separately, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Southwest Airlines Co. has settled a lawsuit involving allegations that Southwest violated Federal Aviation Administration safety regulations during its maintenance of its Boeing 737s.
A Southwest Airlines jet made contact with another Southwest aircraft on the tarmac of the Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, Calif., according to a report. The FAA has reported that no injuries were found, but the damage to the planes was unknown.
A plane destined for Oakland bumped into a Denver-bound plane while backing out of Gate A1. FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford said the crash happened in a part of the airport where traffic controllers were not guiding the planes. All passengers were rebooked while the planes were out of service for inspection.
Separately, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Southwest Airlines Co. has settled a lawsuit involving allegations that Southwest violated Federal Aviation Administration safety regulations during its maintenance of its Boeing 737s. DOJ reported that the settlement requires operational changes by Southwest to enhance its oversight of contractors that perform maintenance on Southwest aircraft. Southwest also agreed to pay a $2.8 million civil penalty and up to $5.5 million in deferred civil penalties if it doesn't implement the changes contained in the settlement agreement.
"Safety depends on compliance with our regulations," said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta. "This agreement provides strong incentives for Southwest to take specific steps to address the compliance problems that the FAA investigations uncovered."