London, April 3:

The US airline safety authority is proposing to impose its maximum fine of $25,000 on British Airways (BA) for flying a jumbo jet from Los Angeles to Britain despite the fact that one of its engines had broken down shortly after take-off.

In an embarrassing chastisement, the US Federal Aviation Administration has accused BA of operating an aircraft in an ‘unairworthy condition’ by failing to cut short the 5,500-mile flight when the fault arose.

Air traffic controllers at Los Angeles airport spotted sparks coming from one of the Boeing 747’s four engines a few seconds after it took off in February last year. After contacting BA’s operations base in London for advice, the captain opted to continue with the 11-hour flight on only three serviceable engines.

However, the fault meant the plane had to fly at a lower altitude and it burnt far more fuel than usual. By the time it reached British airspace, its tanks were so low that the pilot declared an emergency and landed at Manchester. By pressing ahead with the flight, the aircraft avoided an estimated 100, 000 pounds bill for delay compensation to people on board.

The FAA has filed a complaint against BA which points out that the plane bypassed ‘numerous suitable alternative airfields’ for a diversion in the US and Canada. BA is to appeal, vowing to vigorously assert its innocence. The incident has prompted a transatlantic rift. The airline is unapologetic, insisting that nobody was put at risk and its actions were perfectly within rules.