Gulfstream Faces Penalty on Pilot Hours, Maintenance - WSJ.com
By ANDY PASZTOR and SUSAN CAREY
Gulfstream International Airlines Inc., a training ground for many U.S. commuter pilots over the years, faces a $1.3 million civil penalty for allegedly falsifying flight-time records, forcing crews to fly more hours than federal safety rules permit and providing substandard aircraft maintenance, according to the Federal Aviation Administration and Congressional investigators.
Gulfstream and its affiliate, Gulfstream Training Academy, also are under scrutiny by lawmakers and regulators because they helped train and provided initial airline experience for Marvin Renslow, the captain of the Continental Connection commuter plane that crashed Feb. 12 near Buffalo, N.Y., killing 50 people.
Crash investigators believe the cockpit crew allowed their Bombardier Q400 turboprop to slow dangerously while approaching the airport and Capt. Renslow, who initially flunked several proficiency checks during his training, reacted to an early stall warning that night by improperly pulling up the nose of the plane, losing more speed and putting the plane into a fatal dive.
Pilots in the two previous fatal U.S. commuter crashes --both caused by pilot error—also spent time at either Gulfstream International Airlines or Gulfstream's training operations, according to reports by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The troubles confronting Gulfstream International Group Inc. of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., the parent company, reflect broader concerns about the safety of many commuter airlines. Regulators and federal safety experts are examining whether pilots at some of these carriers receive adequate training and whether outside training academies produce pilots that lack sufficient experience to fly the growing number of turboprops and jets at these smaller airlines
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By ANDY PASZTOR and SUSAN CAREY
Gulfstream International Airlines Inc., a training ground for many U.S. commuter pilots over the years, faces a $1.3 million civil penalty for allegedly falsifying flight-time records, forcing crews to fly more hours than federal safety rules permit and providing substandard aircraft maintenance, according to the Federal Aviation Administration and Congressional investigators.
Gulfstream and its affiliate, Gulfstream Training Academy, also are under scrutiny by lawmakers and regulators because they helped train and provided initial airline experience for Marvin Renslow, the captain of the Continental Connection commuter plane that crashed Feb. 12 near Buffalo, N.Y., killing 50 people.
Crash investigators believe the cockpit crew allowed their Bombardier Q400 turboprop to slow dangerously while approaching the airport and Capt. Renslow, who initially flunked several proficiency checks during his training, reacted to an early stall warning that night by improperly pulling up the nose of the plane, losing more speed and putting the plane into a fatal dive.
Pilots in the two previous fatal U.S. commuter crashes --both caused by pilot error—also spent time at either Gulfstream International Airlines or Gulfstream's training operations, according to reports by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The troubles confronting Gulfstream International Group Inc. of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., the parent company, reflect broader concerns about the safety of many commuter airlines. Regulators and federal safety experts are examining whether pilots at some of these carriers receive adequate training and whether outside training academies produce pilots that lack sufficient experience to fly the growing number of turboprops and jets at these smaller airlines
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