Summary
The U.S. Transportation Department’s inspector general said the Federal Aviation Administration has not had enough staff and workforce planning to effectively monitor United Airlines’ maintenance, according to an audit released Friday. The review described how staffing pressures have hindered the FAA’s ability to oversee a large airline fleet and how, in some cases, the agency relied on remote reviews rather than on-site inspection.
The audit period ran from May 2024 through December 2025, according to the inspector general’s office, and it came amid a series of maintenance-linked incidents involving United. The report said FAA staffing shortages have resulted in fewer inspections, reduced surveillance of the carrier’s maintenance operations, and an “overall loss of institutional knowledge.”
In its findings, the inspector general’s office said the FAA sometimes conducted inspections “virtually” when it lacked staffing or funding for travel, even though agency policy requires postponing reviews that cannot be completed on site. The audit said remote work can create safety risks because inspectors may miss or misidentify maintenance problems.
The inspector general’s office also reported that inspectors it spoke with said their front-line managers instructed them to perform inspections virtually rather than postponing them. The report further said that staffing shortages at FAA inspection offices tasked with United’s oversight led to “overall loss of institutional knowledge” and limited the agency’s ability to monitor maintenance trends and evaluate safety risk.
The audit recommendations included a reevaluation of staffing rules, an independent workplace survey to assess inspector workloads and office culture, and improved training for inspectors on accessing and using United’s safety data. The inspector general’s office said a gap in how that data is accessed and used currently keeps inspectors from fully evaluating maintenance issues and safety risk trends.
The FAA declined to comment on the audit findings, but it referred The Associated Press to a letter it sent the inspector general’s office that was included in the audit report. In that letter, the FAA said it agreed with most of the recommendations and was taking steps to address them by the end of the year.
The letter said, “FAA will implement a more systemic approach to strengthen inspector capacity and will take other measures to ensure that staffing levels remain sufficient to meet surveillance requirements.” The audit said the FAA also planned actions that were aimed at inspector training and better use of United safety data.
United, in a statement to AP, said it works closely with the FAA on a daily basis and also uses its own internal safety management system. The carrier said, “United has long advocated in favor of providing the FAA with the resources it needs for its important work.”
The inspector general’s office said earlier audits by the watchdog had also highlighted FAA challenges overseeing other airline maintenance programs, including at American Airlines, Southwest Airlines and Allegiant Air. In the months leading up to the audit’s release, incidents cited by the inspector general’s office included a March 2024 evacuation after a United plane rolled off a runway after landing in Houston, a next-day tire issue on a flight bound for Japan that later landed safely in Los Angeles, and a December 2025 engine failure during takeoff from Dulles International Airport that resulted in a safe return to the airport.
Sources in the audit said the oversight gaps and reliance on virtual inspections were linked to staffing limitations and travel constraints. The report’s recommendations focus on changing how the FAA plans for inspector capacity, how it evaluates inspector workloads, and how inspectors access safety information needed to assess maintenance issues and emerging risk trends.