L.A.B. Flying Service

Infobox Airline
airline = L A B Flying Service

logo_size =
fleet_size =
destinations =
IATA = JF
ICAO = LAB
callsign = LAB
parent =
company_slogan =
founded = 1956
headquarters = Haines, Alaska, U.S.
key_people =
hubs =
secondary_hubs =
focus_cities =
frequent_flyer =
lounge =
alliance =
website = http://www.labflying.com/

L.A.B. Flying Service is an American airline based in Haines, Alaska, U.S. It operates scheduled, charter and sightseeing flights in Southeast Alaska. Its main base is Haines Airport, with a hub at Juneau International Airport.cite news | title= Directory: World Airlines | work= Flight International | page= 103 | date= 2007-04-03]

History

The airline was established and started operations in 1956. It had 55 employees as of March 2007. L.A.B. Flying Service, named for its founder (and President), Layton A. Bennett, is Alaska's oldest continuously-operating small passenger airline. Layton A. Bennett received the FAA's Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award for his work in operating the airline for over 50 years. [ [http://www.faa.gov/safety/awards/wright_bros/list/ Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award list] ]

2008 Grounding

In July of 2008, APRN reported that the FAA had grounded LAB's entire fleet, because, in their words, "LAB Flying Service lacks the care, judgment and responsibility required to hold an air carrier certificate." One of the seven counts listed in the grounding order stated that LAB mechanics took an engine off of an airplane that had been destroyed in a fire with temperatures in excess of 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit and re-mounted it on another airplane, intending to put it back into service. LAB will not be able to apply for a new flight certificate until July 2009, unless they succesfully appeal the order before then. [ [http://aprn.org/2008/07/28/faa-report-details-why-lab-flying-service-was-grounded/ | "FAA report details why LAB Flying Service was grounded" APRN's Rosemarie Alexander, KTOO - Juneau, Mon, July 28, 2008] ] LAB's website and email system turned off August 26, 2008.

References