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Federal regulators are increasing their oversight of\u00a0United Airlines<\/a>, the company announced Friday, following a series of recent issues including a piece of the outer fuselage falling off one jet, an engine fire and a plane losing a tire during takeoff.<\/p>\n United\u2019s vice president of corporate safety, Sasha Johnson, said the Federal Aviation Administration will examine \u201cmultiple areas of our operation\u201d to ensure safety compliance.<\/p>\n \u201cOver the next several weeks, we will begin to see more of an FAA presence in our operation as they begin to review some of our work processes, manuals and facilities,\u201d she said in a note to employees. \u201cWe welcome their engagement and are very open to hear from them about what they find and their perspective on things we may need to change to make us even safer.\u201d<\/p>\n Johnson said the FAA will pause certification activities but did not provide details.<\/p>\n The agency said it \u201croutinely monitors all aspects of an airline\u2019s operation\u201d and did not describe any additional steps it is taking in United\u2019s case.<\/p>\n In a statement, an agency spokesperson said FAA oversight \u201cfocuses on an airline\u2019s compliance with applicable regulations; ability to identify hazards, assess and mitigate risk; and effectively manage safety.\u201d<\/p>\n Earlier this week, FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker told NBC News, \u201cWe are going to look at each one of these incidents and see if we see a pattern. \u2026 No one likes to see this spike of incidents.\u201d<\/p>\n Whitaker said he spoke with United CEO Scott Kirby<\/a> about the events.<\/p>\n Separately this week, Kirby tried to\u00a0reassure customers<\/a>\u00a0that the airline is safe, saying that the recent issues were unrelated to each other.<\/p>\n Kirby said the airline was already planning an extra day of training for pilots starting in May and making changes in training curriculum for newly hired mechanics and that it would consider additional changes.<\/p>\n Among the most recent issues, a chunk of outer aluminum skin was discovered to have\u00a0fallen off the belly<\/a>\u00a0of a United Boeing<\/a> 737 after it landed in Oregon. Earlier this month, a United jet suffered an\u00a0engine fire<\/a>\u00a0during takeoff from Houston, and a\u00a0tire fell off<\/a>\u00a0another United jet as it left San Francisco.<\/p>\n Other problems included a hydraulic leak and a plane veering off a taxiway and\u00a0getting stuck in grass<\/a>.<\/p>\n United is the nation\u2019s second-largest airline by revenue, behind Delta Air Lines<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\nSubscribe to the Eye on AI newsletter to stay abreast of how AI is shaping the future of business. Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n