Summary

A Florida maker and distributor of aircraft hoses and its vice-president were fined in August 1999 and ordered to replace some 1,900 substandard aircraft hoses after pleading guilty to making false statements about the regulatory conformance of products made at the firm. Some of the hoses move fuel or
oil, and are considered "flight-critical" parts. Air-Pro Inc. will pay a fine of $200,000 and replace hoses worth an estimated $138,000. John Wilson, vice-president of Air-Pro, was fined $2,000 and must serve 18 months' probation. The firm misrepresented the manufacture dates of hoses, failed to sanitize and test hoses used in breathing apparatus, and substituted material with a lower failure temperature for the material required on sleeves that protect hoses from chafing. James Harris, the firm's quality-control manager, was sentenced in July to a fine of $1,500, to 300 hours of community service and to 2 years' probation for making false statements.