Special Counsel has hands full with FAA

The U.S. Office of Special Counsel is probing 32 separate disclosures made this year by employees at the Federal Aviation Administration that challenge the agency, suggesting the FAA's problems may run far deeper than it has acknowledged. The investigations include new allegations from Douglas Peters and Charalambe "Bobby" Boutris, the two FAA employees who revealed that agency managers last year allowed Southwest Airlines to fly planes that were overdue for mandatory safety inspections.

A spokesman for the Special Counsel discussed the number of investigations, which is far greater than previous reports indicated, following a presentation where Messrs. Peters and Boutris received public-service awards. Neither the two inspectors nor the Special Counsel -- an independent office that protects government whistleblowers from retaliation -- would discuss details of the new allegations.

James Mitchell, a spokesman for U.S. Special Counsel Scott Bloch, said his office received 33 disclosures of FAA wrongdoing from 2004 to 2007. After the high-profile validation of Messrs. Peters and Boutris this spring, a new wave of people has come forward raising questions about the FAA, nearly doubling the number of agency investigations under way.

"This is our premier problem right now," Mr. Mitchell said.

Some of the others challenging FAA practices are air-traffic controllers who say they faced retaliation for pointing out safety problems. Peter Nesbitt, a controller in Tennessee, says he suddenly was hit with negative performance reviews after speaking out against a controversial landing procedure in Memphis, Tenn., that was leading to near misses.

Melissa Ott, a controller in Ohio, says she continues to face what she calls an unwarranted internal security investigation since she spoke with the media about how a trainee's error in March led to a close call between two airplanes above Pittsburgh.

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