Eastern Air Wins AF Reprieve

The Air Force announced today that it will continue to allow Eastern Airlines the right to carry military passengers but said it will closely watch the carrier after inspectors reported “performance deficiencies.”

The Military Airlift Command said Eastern was the subject of a “commercial carrier survey” in March. Air Force inspectors said they found “performance deficiencies that, if not corrected, could affect the safety of the half a million (Defense Department) personnel who annually fly on Eastern aircraft.” The airline handled about $87 million worth of military travel business in fiscal 1987.