Cargo Airline Pays $5 Million in Penalties

MIAMI — Cargo carrier Arrow Air paid $5 million in penalties Tuesday for selling uninspected jet parts and covering it up.

At sentencing in federal court, lawyers for the Miami-based airline produced one check covering a $3-million fine and another check for $2 million that will go toward research and seminars on airline safety at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach.

Arrow reached a plea bargain in April after the Federal Aviation Administration grounded the airline in 1995, alleging that it certified more than 3,000 parts from two jets as airworthy without inspecting them.

Arrow also paid a $1.5-million civil fine to the FAA, which had accused Arrow of failing to follow maintenance requirements, falsifying records, skipping required safety audits and using undocumented parts.