PlaneDoctor™ - Tucson training of NW Air fill-ins questioned

By Lynda Edwards

ARIZONA DAILY STAR

As Northwest Airlines' unionized mechanics head toward a strike at midnight Friday, more than 500 replacement workers trained in Tucson this summer will hit airports nationwide to keep America's fourth-biggest airline aloft.

The mechanics union insists it takes more than a cram course at a laptop to train a good replacement.

While the union has an interest in questioning the training, the federal agency safeguarding American air travel has also asked urgent questions. Among them: Do replacement mechanics get the training needed to keep an airline safe during a strike?

The question worried the Department of Transportation inspector general's office as replacement mechanics poured into Tucson this June. The office issued a June 3 study of financially distressed airlines including Northwest and found rips in the airline industry's safety net.

The Federal Aviation Administration and Northwest insist they will not compromise on safety.

All replacement mechanics will have airframe and power plant (A&P) licenses from the FAA, said Andy Roberts, Northwest's executive vice president of operations. Holders of A&P certificates typically have taken at least two years of college-level courses and passed written, oral and practical exams.

Northwest scheduled its replacement workers for about two months of preparation here, including 24 hours of hands-on training on company aircraft stored at Evergreen Air Center, about 45 minutes northwest of Tucson. They were scheduled to complete training by Aug. 8, but at least 160 are staying on longer.

The inspector general's report raised questions about dangers posed when cost-cutting airlines lay off experienced ground crews and outsource maintenance to lower-paid vendors. Such vendors will supplement Northwest's replacement workers if the union strikes. The inspector general found:

● The FAA does not have enough inspectors to examine replacement workers' training adequately - a problem that could get worse. The agency is expecting to lose about 300 aviation safety inspectors this year, leaving too few inspectors for "high-risk or emerging issues."

● Up to 90 percent of airline maintenance is done overnight, but FAA officials spent no more than 7 percent of their work time conducting nighttime inspections in one recent quarter. In Northwest's case, inspectors spent only 2 percent of their time on night surveillance.

● Runway collisions between U.S. passenger planes have resulted from insufficiently trained ground crews. In one case, a vehicle used to tow aircraft hit a Northwest airplane in 2003 as passengers were boarding. The tow driver died.

"When you see a plane moved on the ground to free a gate, or for maintenance, it's likely a mechanic rather than a pilot is at the controls," said Steve McFarlane, assistant national director for the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association.

He said Northwest managers who are former union mechanics observed the training here. They told him that "Tucson trainees did not have enough time at the controls on runway. They spent most (of) their time in a simulator."

McFarlane also said trainees worked primarily on Boeing 727s - not one of the main models in Northwest's fleet.

Every time an airplane roars into the sky, a mechanic has authorized its takeoff. But a mechanic certified to maintain an Airbus 320 cannot authorize a Boeing 747 to take off.

Elizabeth Cory, an FAA spokeswoman, said each mechanic must pass a certification exam for the specific aircraft the mechanic will service.

An FAA inspector spent a total of nine days reviewing Northwest's Tucson training during three separate visits but Cory did not know what type of aircraft the replacement workers used for hands-on training.

In addition, Cory said, about 50 inspectors are assigned permanently to the Northwest facilities in various cities where replacements would work. That number could increase significantly if the FAA sees a need, she said.

Paul Worthington, marketing director of Evergreen Air Center in Marana, and President Bob McAndrews declined to comment.

Asked which aircraft the trainees worked on, Northwest spokesperson Tracy Carlson said in an e-mail message, "The aircraft in the Northwest fleet that they will be working on."

All U.S. airports also require ground crews to take "airport-specific" training, said Tom Andrews, vice president of operations for Tucson International Airport, where Northwest has a flight to Minneapolis-St. Paul.

An internal Northwest strike plan dated June 28 - and obtained by several news organizations, including the Arizona Daily Star - said the Tucson trainees would spend July 1 through August 8 learning to "pushback/tow/brake/ride." The plan noted that some Northwest managers are FAA-certified mechanics who can maneuver jets through airports. It said they would help replacement workers during the first three to five days of the strike.

The hands-on training was to be complete by Aug. 8. But Northwest sought rooms here for at least 160 replacement workers through Sept. 27

Ed Foster, vice president of operations for the Radisson Hotel City Center, 181 W. Broadway, helped Northwest find rooms for replacement workers this summer in several Tucson hotels. They were scheduled to leave the Radisson Monday, but Northwest wanted some to stay on. "Northwest wanted more than 160 rooms, but I didn't have them," Foster said.

Carlson, of Northwest, would not comment on why some replacements were staying on.

The mechanics union has refused Northwest's demand for a $176 million cut in annual wages and benefits. Northwest also wants to cut about 2,000 of around 4,500 union mechanic jobs.

● Contact reporter Lynda Edwards at 573-4179 or at ledwards@azstarnet.com.

● The Minneapolis Star Tribune contributed to this report.