ILLINOIS : Ex-Airline Workers Held in Safety Lapses

Skyway Airlines, a small Midwestern commuter carrier, flew some planes with emergency landing gear that did not work, broken fuel gauges and improper parts, U.S. Atty. Jim Burns said. Five former employees at the airline’s Rockford, Ill., maintenance facility were indicted on more than two dozen counts of fraud for lying on safety records and to federal inspectors to save money during a two-year period from 1990 to 1992, Burns said. Skyway, which is now owned by Midwest Express Airlines and employs different maintenance crews, was then flying under contract with Farmington, N.M.-based Mesa Airlines, which Burns said was not held responsible for the safety lapses.