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MLIT Issues Improvement Recommendation to ANA Over Intentional Maintenance Misconduct

The directive requires a plan to prevent repeat lapses by May 15.

Overview

  • Japan’s transport ministry, which issued the administrative improvement recommendation on Tuesday, told ANA to file concrete prevention measures by May 15.
  • Investigators found that on November 27 at Osaka Itami, a mechanic used a brake fluid banned for some aircraft, wrote a false entry saying the correct oil was used, and later told a coworker to swap in some proper oil to hide the error.
  • A separate case on November 13 at Narita involved cargo-bay rail damage that exceeded repair limits, yet a mechanic called it a minor issue without checking standards and the plane flew without the repair.
  • MLIT said the conduct was intentional and malicious and escalated its response from a 2024 strict warning to a formal directive to improve the airline’s safety management.
  • ANA and parent ANA Holdings said Tuesday they will cut pay for 50 executives for one month, including a 30% reduction for former CEO Shinichi Inoue and current CEO Juichi Hirasawa.