Emery Airlines fined $6 million for hazmat violations

Emery Airlines fined $6 million for hazmat violations    The Bush administration said defunct Emery Worldwide Airlines has pled guilty to 12 felony counts for violating federal hazardous material transportation law and agreed to pay a $6 million fine.
   Emery is a subsidiary of transportation conglomerate CNF Inc., but exists only as a legal entity having shut down operations in 2002 after a series of setbacks that included the Federal Aviation Administration grounding its fleet for safety violations and the loss of a major U.S. Postal Service contract.
   'With the sheer amount of hazardous materials being shipped on our nation's transportation infrastructure, we must track down and bring to justice those who violate our transportation laws,' Attorney General John Ashcroft said in a statement.
   'There are no shortcuts to safety, and we will give no quarter to those who violate hazmat transportation safety requirements,' Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said in the statement.
   Emery admitted that on 12 occasions between November 1998 and July 1999 it transported hazardous material on aircraft leaving its Dayton, Ohio hub without providing the required written notification to the pilot that hazardous material had been placed aboard the aircraft. The notice is designed to help pilots know how to respond to on-board emergencies, such as fires or spills.