Allegiant Airlines is defending accusations regarding safety concerns about their planes made by a former mechanic.
An Allegiant spokesperson says an internal investigation and report determined nothing was found that would validate any of the claims, and the mechanic's accusations are unfounded.
Greg Marino worked for Allegiant Air for two weeks and quit because he said the airline is heading down a "dangerous path."
He told the I-Team that workers were cutting corners on safety and implementing questionable practices. In one example, he said managers failed to perform proper additional safety tests and sent a plane out anyway.
MORE | Former Allegiant Air mechanic says passengers should be concerned with airline's safety
Our I-Team requested a copy of the internal report, but an Allegiant Air spokesperson said the company is not willing to release it.
Allegiant's response to our request for a copy of the internal report:
Jarrod--
The report is an internal document, and is the result of a broad analysis we ordered as a result of unconfirmed allegations publicized by outlets such as yours without an exploration of the merit of the claims. While we have always expressed our 100% confidence in our safety standards, we are never dismissive of employee concerns, even if they only work for us for six days. We will not be releasing the report, but will say that it confirms our confidence in the diligence and commitment to safety of all of our maintenance personnel.
To briefly summarize the report:Allegiant safety experts traveled to Orlando Sanford to investigate allegations reported in the media. These experts interviewed all maintenance personnel at Orlando Sanford and spent time observing maintenance operations. Our experts also made an exhaustive search of records for mention of related or similar issues being reported. Throughout this process, we found nothing that would validate any of the claims reported in the media. We were unable to find any formal reports or documentation of concern that support the issues expressed by the source quoted in the media. The Allegiant team at Orlando Sanford is made up of highly trained professionals, many with extensive experience at other airlines and/or in the military. We are 100% confident in their commitment and ability to keep Allegiant aircraft well maintained and safe. While we can't speculate as to the source or motivation of any of the allegations in the media, the evidence gathered disproves what we have seen reported in the media.
Kim Schaefer
Public Relations Manager
Allegiant Travel Company
Prior to the original mechanic story airing, the I-Team did reach out to Schaefer about the mechanic's accusations. Allegiant said it could not comment about internal employee matters.
