The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration, FAA, proposes a $200,000 civil penalty against Detroit’s Wayne County Airport (DTW) for allegedly failing to maintain safe airfield conditions during a November 2014 storm.
Unless successfully challenged – highly unlikely – once again beleaguered taxpayers will be picking up the tab for illegal behavior at an airport that has a long history of patronage, malfeasance and criminal behavior by Democratic politicians who control Wayne County.
DTW, which services many automakers and suppliers, failed to follow its FAA-mandated Snow and Ice Control Plan (SICP) during the storm. As a result, it allegedly allowed various DTW airfield surfaces to become unsafe and failed to limit air carrier operations to portions of the airfield where they could safely occur.
The FAA further alleges that WCAA failed to notify airlines of changing runway conditions; activate the DTW “snow desk” to coordinate snow removal operations; monitor snow removal operations and issue information about conditions affecting the runways, taxiways and ramp areas; conduct frequent runway inspections and friction tests; provide enough qualified personnel on the airfield to comply with the SICP; and issue a timely notice that a runway was closed.
The FAA said that WCAA failed to treat a taxiway and a deicing pad with deicer fluid. One commercial jet slid off the untreated taxiway and onto the grass, and a cargo jet became stranded due to icy conditions after exiting a runway. Three commercial airliners also became stranded on the de-icing pad for approximately three hours – each due to icy pavement conditions, the FAA said.
