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Another major airline is coming in for extra attention from the government. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Federal Aviation Administration is performing an audit of Southwest Airlines and its adherence to federal safety regulations.
The FAA confirmed the audit to Quartz, saying in a statement that “The FAA has increased oversight of Southwest Airlines to ensure it is complying with federal safety regulations through the Certificate Holder Evaluation Process.”
In a statement to Quartz, Southwest also confirmed that it “is working closely with the Federal Aviation Administration in the review of recent events” and that “Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of our Customers and Employees.”
The carrier has been dealing with a string of concerning incidents involving its planes, including two instances from this month alone. During one flight, a Southwest plane flew dangerously close to Tampa Bay in Florida while approaching a runway before it had to be diverted to Fort Lauderdale on the other side of the state. Another flight mistakenly took off from a runway that had been closed for construction.
Southwest isn’t the only airline to face extra scrutiny from the FAA this year. In March, United Airlines told its staff that the agency was looking into it after a particular rough patch of safety-related incidents. It gave the company some breathing room in May. It’s not clear how long the FAA will be giving Southwest additional oversight.
“Safety will drive the timeline,” the agency said.