FAA Considered Grounding 38 Southwest Planes Over Missing Documentation

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) threatened to ground as many as 38 Southwest Airlines jets due to insufficient paperwork pertaining to the planes' maintenance records last month, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.

The low-cost carrier allegedly failed to provide documentation proving that the planes meet required safety standards.

The previous owners of the aircraft in question did not keep reliable maintenance records, the Journal reports. Southwest acquired 88 used Boeing 737 NG planes between 2013 and 2017, nearly half of which have been fully inspected to verify paperwork.

The airline reassured the FAA that each of the planes has undergone extensive regular maintenance since joining Southwest's fleet.

The FAA has agreed to let the planes remain in service while Southwest-which claims there's no safety risk despite the lack of documentation-works to complete the required inspections. The airline has until January to bring the necessary paperwork into compliance.

Southwest's fleet also includes 34 Boeing 737 Max jets, which have been grounded since March. The carrier recently removed the troubled aircraft from its flight schedule through March 6, 2020.

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