The FAA will continue to work with the airlines throughout the day to try and minimize delays for travelers. We encourage all travelers to check their flight status and also to visit fly.faa.gov for the latest airport delay information.

Yesterday more than 863 delays in the system were attributable to staffing reductions resulting from the furlough at the New York, Washington, Cleveland, Jacksonville and Los Angeles En Route Centers, the Potomac, Dallas and Southern California TRACONs and Detroit Tower. There were more than 1,269 additional delays as a result of weather and other factors.

The FAA alleges that UPS failed to follow FAA-approved procedures for making structural repairs to two DC-8 aircraft and two MD-11 aircraft. UPS operated the four planes on more than 400 flights between October 2008 and June 2009.

The aviation industry knows that we take safety very seriously, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. Air carriers must comply with federal regulations to ensure aircraft are maintained to the highest level of safety.

These violations stem from UPSs failure to fully comply with the terms of a consent agreement in which the carrier agreed to inspect all aircraft in its fleet and compare actual repairs with maintenance records. This would have ensured the four aircraft were in compliance with the regulations.

No aircraft should leave the ground until the operator has made all necessary repairs, and made them according to the correct procedures, said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta.

UPS has 30 days from the receipt of the FAA's civil penalty letter to respond to the agency.

The FAA will continue to work with the airlines throughout the day to try and minimize delays for travelers. We encourage all travelers to check their flight status and also to visit fly.faa.gov for the latest airport delay information.

Yesterday more than 1,025 delays in the system were attributable to staffing reductions resulting from the furlough. There were more than 975 additional delays as a result of weather and other factors.

The FAA will continue to work with the airlines throughout the day to try and minimize delays for travelers. We encourage all travelers to check their flight status and also to visit fly.faa.gov for the latest airport delay information.

Yesterday more than 1,200 delays in the system were attributable to staffing reductions resulting from the furlough. There were more than 1,400 additional delays as a result of weather and other factors.

Next week, the FAA will issue instructions to operators for making changes to the aircraft and will publish in the Federal Register the final directive that will allow the 787 to return to service with the battery system modifications. The directive will take effect upon publication. The FAA will require airlines that operate the 787 to install containment and venting systems for the main and auxiliary system batteries, and to replace the batteries and their chargers with modified components.

Safety of the traveling public is our number one priority. These changes to the 787 battery will ensure the safety of the aircraft and its passengers, said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

A team of FAA certification specialists observed rigorous tests we required Boeing to perform and devoted weeks to reviewing detailed analysis of the design changes to reach this decision, said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta.

To assure proper installation of the new design, the FAA will closely monitor modifications of the aircraft in the U.S. fleet. The FAA will stage teams of inspectors at the modification locations. Any return to service of the modified 787 will only take place after the FAA accepts the work.

As the certifying authority, the FAA will continue to support other authorities around the world as they finalize their own acceptance procedures.

We expect all airports to comply with our safety regulations and to correct any deficiencies immediately, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. These violations were egregious, and they will not be tolerated.

Under the agreement, the PANYNJ agrees to pay a $3.5 million fine within 30 days. If there is a violation of the settlement agreement, the FAA will impose an additional fine of $1.5 million and will assess an additional $27,500 daily for each violation. In addition to the fine, the PANYNJ has agreed to take the following actions, with FAA approval, to address the underlying problems that led to systemic noncompliance with ARFF requirements at the four airports:

• The Port Authority will create a dedicated ARFF force to carry out airport-related ARFF functions with no collateral police officer duties.
• The staff will report directly to the Department of Aviation and be operational no later than March 31, 2014.
• The Port Authority will hire an ARFF fire chief and facility captains as soon as possible, but no later than March 31, 2014.
• The Port Authority will submit a curriculum for training to the FAA on or before December 31, 2013, which includes at least 75 hours of initial ARFF training and 40 hours of annual recurrent firefighting training in addition to Part 139 training, pertaining to an airports operational and safety standards and providing for such things as firefighting and rescue.
• The ARFF personnel will work a 12-hour shift.
• The Port Authority will amend the airport certification manuals for the four airports to include: an organizational chart; a process to maintain ARFF training records; and a description of ARFF operations, including shift assignments, personnel training records management, and Department of Aviation oversight.
• The Port Authority will conduct monthly internal audits of ARFF training and shift assignments and annual external audits to ensure that all ARFF personnel assigned to a shift are trained.

We expect the Port Authority to have trained safety personnel to ensure the safety of the travelling public and airport personnel, just like we have at all airports in the United States, said FAA Administrator Michael P. Huerta.

The FAA became aware of ARFF violations as a result of an annual airport certification safety inspection of JFK in December 2011. The FAA also discovered similar violations at Teterboro, which prompted a full review of training at LaGuardia, Newark Liberty International, and Stewart International Airports. The review of ARFF training revealed violations at LaGuardia and Newark, with no violations at Stewart.

The FAA believes the settlement agreement provides the best long-term solution to ensure ARFF compliance, given the systemic nature of the PANYNJ airport problems.

This additional time will allow the agency to attempt to resolve multiple legal challenges to the closure decisions. As part of the tower closure implementation process, the agency continues to consult with airports and operators and review appropriate risk mitigations. Extending the transition deadline will give the FAA and airports more time to execute the changes to the National Airspace System.

This has been a complex process and we need to get this right, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. Safety is our top priority. We will use this additional time to make sure communities and pilots understand the changes at their local airports.

As of today, approximately 50 airport authorities and other stakeholders have indicated they may join the FAAs non-Federal Contract Tower program and fund the tower operations themselves. This additional time will allow the FAA to help facilitate that transition.

We will continue our outreach to the user community to answer any questions and address their concerns about these tower closures, said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta.

On March 22, the FAA announced that it would stop federal funding for 149 contract towers across the country. A phased, four-week closure process was scheduled to begin this Sunday, April 7. That phased closure process will no longer occur. Instead, the FAA will stop funding all 149 towers on June 15 and will close the facilities unless the airports decide to continue operations as a nonfederal contract tower.

• Contract Tower Closure Guidance (PDF)