Revelations on pilot pay, working conditions at regional airlines raise safety issues
Members of Congress said they were stunned by the salaries of the pilots of Continental Connection Flight 3407, employees of the smaller commuter airline Colgan Air Inc. The pilots may have tried to snatch sleep in an airport crew lounge, which is against company policy. The first officer lived with her parents near Seattle and commuting cross country to work in New Jersey.
"All these things raise questions: Are they an aberration or are FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) standards sufficient? Or are the standards not enforced?" said Democratic Sen. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation subcommittee on aviation.