By David Shepardson
(Reuters) -The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Friday it has barred the company that operates Hawaiian cargo airline Transair from flying or conducting maintenance inspections until it complies with U.S. regulations.
The agency’s decision is separate from an ongoing investigation into the July 2 accident involving a Transair Boeing (NYSE:BA) 737-200 that crashed into the Pacific Ocean near Honolulu. Both of the aircraft's two crew members were rescued.
The FAA said it began investigating maintenance and safety practices of Rhoades Aviation Inc last fall. The FAA said that as of Thursday, Transair had one operational Boeing 737-200.
Rhoades Aviation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
On June 13, the FAA notified Rhoades Aviation the agency intended to rescind authority for the airline to conduct maintenance inspections due to deficiencies identified during the investigation. The FAA gave the company 30 days under the administrative process to ask the FAA to reconsider, which it did not do.
Last week investigators located Transair Flight 810 approximately two miles offshore from Ewa Beach in Honolulu. The 737-200 was about 45 years old.
The major components of the airplane - the aft fuselage including both wings and tail along with both engines, and forward fuselage - were located on the sea floor at depths between 360 and 420 feet, the National Transportation Safety Board.