Better safe than sorry is always a good thing. Sometimes.
Because as American Airlines canceled more than 500 flights nationwide -- more than 30 at LaGuardia Airport, alone -- on Tuesday and then did the same Wednesday in the name of federal compliance, the lingering question is "Why?" Why did it take the cancelation of so many flights, as American mechanics checked the electrical wiring in the wheel well areas of its MD-80 fleet, in the final hour, instead of having the work done correctly the first time? And why didn't the Federal Aviation Administration enforce its own mandates sooner -- instead of forcing such drastic measures?
Certainly, the move the ground the MD-80 fleet for maintenance was a good one, even though American officials insisted there were no safety concerns involved -- and that passengers were never in danger. Certainly, it was a good move -- unless, of course, you were one of the thousands of passengers who was stranded. The move made a mess of air travel through the New York-metro area Tuesday and again on Wednesday.
As a result, FAA officials took turns patting themselves on the back for laying down the law -- and American Airlines officials did the same for obeying the law.
Ah, but no matter how many apologies were also issued, it is a sin that officials -- of both the FAA and American -- made the public, the flying public, bear the burden without some sort of advance warning. We can only hope that such drastic measures will convince airlines it is better to deal with potential safety issues before the FAA puts them on a radar screen somewhere than it is to have to cancel flights in order to handle inspections. And we can only hope that FAA inspectors will be much more proactive -- and get out of bed with the airlines and the industry -- and start pushing safety inspections, making certain the rules are met before being forced to take such drastic measures in the future.