Well it seems the federal regulator, the Federal Aviation Administration, has just recently proposed a maintenance penalty against American Airlines. According to reports, this fine is going to cost the airline close to $787,500. This is the cost for all three cases of alleged maintenance problems for the carrier.

In the most serious case, the Federal Aviation Administration says that American Airlines operated a plane without replacing a central air data computer on the jet. The McDonnell Douglas jet has two such computers. These computers tell pilots the speed and altitude of the plane while in flight.

Back in April of 2008, pilots landing in Los Angeles noticed warning indicators going off. Mechanics later traced the problem back to the computer. Instead of fixing this computer as required by federal rules, the mechanics wrote up the incident as a problem with the auto throttle and the plane flew for 10 more flights with this broken computer.

One of the other cases involved inadequate inspections of rudder components on some Boeing 757 jets. In the third and final incident, the Federal Aviation Administration said mechanics sent a plane back into service before final steps of a through maintenance review were checked of as completed. Right now American Airlines has 30 days to respond to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Tim Smith, an airline spokesman, said that American Airlines was reviewing the Federal Aviation Administration’s charges and will meet with regulators to discuss the proposed penalties. He said that American Airlines is very proud of their safety record and their employees’ commitment to safety every day and on every flight.