FAA Announces Increased Oversight Over United Airlines Due to Safety Concerns

Recent headlines surrounding flight safety issues have risen during a busy travel season for spring breakers. Alaska Airline's incident involving a defected plane door flying off mid-flight from a Boeing 737- and a variety of incidents since- have travelers concerned for their flight safety.

United Airlines aircraft/NurPhoto for Getty Images

On Friday, United Airlines announced the Federal Aviation Administration will be increasing its oversight over their company. United Airlines Vice President of Corporate Safety, Sasha Johnson, announced the FAA would increase their presence in reviewing the airline's "work processes, manuals and facilities," the Hill reported on Saturday.

The FAA uses its Safety Assurance System to increase and monitor flight safety.

The Administration's announcement to increase its oversight comes after widespread safety concerns with Boeing's production of aircraft parts. Many travelers have rebooked their flights and changed their travel plans just to avoid boarding a Boeing plane, NBC News reports.

According to the Washington Post, Kayak's travel booking site offers a filter for users to deselect Boeing aircrafts when booking flights. The travel site's tool even allows users to choose between different models of Boeing planes, According to a report by the Washington Post. Airlines including JetBlue, Spirit, and Frontier do not fly Boeing aircrafts and fly Airbus instead.

Despite recent headlines surrounding flight safety concerns, NPR reports that flying in the United States is one of the safest ways to travel.

The last fatal plane crash in the United States involving a mainstream airline was recorded in 2009, according to NPR. FAA Administrator, Michael Whitaker, told NBC News the administration will be examining each individual incident that has raised safety concerns, looking for a pattern. These incidents include a missing external panel from an aircraft mid-flight- which previously prompted an FAA investigation- a lost tire during takeoff, and an engine fire.

In United Airline's recent announcement, Johnson said the airline welcomes the FAA's oversight and engagement in ensuring flight safety. According to the Hill, Johnson's memo stated, "We welcome their engagement and are very open to hear from them about what they find and their perspective on things we may need to change to make us even safer."

For the readers, when was the last time you flew on a plane, and how was that experience?