The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing a $325,000 civil penalty against Dallas-based Southwest Airlines for allegedly operating an aircraft that had been improperly modified, violating Federal Aviation Regulations. On August 29, 2011, maintenance personnel improperly installed a switch that enables flight crews to test the windshield heating system on a Boeing 717 that AirTran Airways was operating. Southwest is in the process of merging with AirTran.
The FAA notice states that the proper installation of the switch would have allowed personnel to isolate the windshield anti-ice system that was causing a warning that the windshield heater was failing. Instead, the center and left windshield warning systems were reversed. The right windshield warning system continued to operate properly. The aircraft was operated on 1,140 passenger flights before the problem was corrected.
Southwest said in a statement on the proposed fine that the problem was immediately fixed after its discovery and that it did not result in "a Safety of flight issue as the primary notification system remained effective to alert the Crew of a potential window heater malfunction".
"We were aware of the proposed penalty and have been actively working with the FAA on a resolution," noted the company in its statement. "Safety is the top priority at Southwest Airlines.