OSHA finds safety lapses of American Airlines subsidiary caused fatality
- July 24, 2025
- Posted by: Web workers
- Category: Workers Comp
A Salisbury, Maryland-based airline exposed workers to engine and jet blast hazards, which killed a ground crew member who was pulled into the spinning turbines of a jet engine in December 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced Wednesday.
Piedmont Airlines Inc., a subsidiary of American Airlines Group, was fined $15,625 for the incident that took place at the Montgomery Regional Airport in Montgomery, Alabama.
Federal investigators determined that, as the wing walker on a ground crew placed cones around a small passenger plane, suction near one of the plane’s engines pulled her inward.
OSHA issued Piedmont Airlines a citation for one serious violation for exposing ground crew workers to ingestion hazards while performing aircraft marshaling, wing-walking and baggage-handling tasks. The company has 15 days to contest the citation.
