LAX officials complain of FAA malfunctions

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- Officials at the Los Angeles International Airport have complained that equipment maintained by the Federal Aviation Administration has repeatedly failed.

The comments followed the malfunction of Instrument Landing System, the fourth equipment malfunction at the airport in less than a month, causing lengthy delays, The Los Angeles Times reported.

"This is clearly a systemic problem with the equipment," said Lydia Kennard, executive director of Los Angeles World Airports, the city agency that operates LAX. "We believe there's something fundamentally wrong with the equipment. It has to be fixed or replaced."

The FAA has not yet determined the cause of the malfunctions, leading to frustration among airport and airline officials.

"Enough is enough," said Frank Clark, executive director of the nonprofit organization that represents airlines operating at the Tom Bradley International Terminal. "The frequency of these within a relatively short interval does create a cause for concern and leads us to wonder if there isn't something more systemic going on with maintenance and age of equipment."