In a decision dated December 21, 2020, federal Administrative Law Judge Scott R. Morris found Delta Air Lines, Inc. guilty of having used a compulsory psychiatric examination as a โweaponโ against Dr. Karlene Petitt after she raised safety issues related to the airlineโs flight operations. ย
Dr. Petitt has been a pilot for over forty years, has a doctorate in Aviation Safety from Embry-Riddle, and currently flies the Airbus A350.ย On January 28, 2016, she submitted a 43-page safety report Delta Senior Vice President of Flight Steven Dickson (currently serving as the Trump administrationโs FAA Administrator) and Vice President of Flying Operations Jim Graham (currently serve as the CEO of Delta subsidiary Endeavor Air).ย The report raised issues concerning:ย pilot fatigue, pilot training, pilot training records, and Deltaโs failure to properly maintain its FAA-mandated Safety Management Systems (SMS) program.ย While Judge Morris characterized Dr. Petittโs stated safety concerns as โprudent and reasonable,โ he found that Captain Graham viewed her โtenacity in seeking clarification about her stated safety concerns as somehow problematic.โย
Graham subsequently ordered Dr. Petitt to submit to psychiatric examination, a decision approved by Stephen Dickson. Prompted by its legal counsel Chris Puckett, Delta selected Dr. David B. Altman as the examiner, whom the judge characterized as โmerely a tool used by Captain Graham to effectuate a management objective.โ [Decision at 97]. In a consent order dated August 24, 2020, Dr. Altman agreed to be placed on permanent inactive status as a part of a settlement of an action brought by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to revoke or suspend his license, or otherwise subject him to discipline. [Attachment B and C]. Altman received over $73,000 for his psychiatric report and relied on Dr. Petittโs safety-related communications, provided to him by Delta, to diagnose her with โmaniaโ and โgrandiosity.โ [Decision at 54-55, 57]. Altman testified that his adverse diagnosis was also driven in part by Dr. Petittโs ability to raise children, assist her husband with his business, and attend night school, which he described as โwell beyond what any woman Iโve ever met could do.โ [Decision at 56].
Altmanโs diagnosis was subsequently rejected by both the Mayo Clinic and a third โtie-breakerโ psychiatrist; however, the process dragged out over 21 months during which โher very career hanged in balance.โ [Decision at 80]. Judge Morris awarded Dr. Petitt compensatory damages of $500,000 โ five times the highest previously recorded award under the whistleblower statute โ in recognition of the โsevere emotional toll this placed on [Dr. Petittโs] wellbeing.โ [Decision at 80].
As Judge Morris held: โit is improper for [Delta] to weaponize this process for the purposes of obtaining blind compliance by its pilots due to fear that [Delta] can ruin their career by such cavalier use of this tool of last resort.โ [Decision at 98]. Judge Morris quoted findings of Dr. Steinkraus of the Mayo Clinic with respect to the diagnosis of Dr. Petitt:
โThis has been a puzzle for our group โ the evidence does not support presence of a psychiatric diagnosis but does support an organizational/corporate effort to remove this pilot from the rolls. โฆ years ago in the military, it was not unusual for female pilots and air crew to be the target for such an effort.โ
The judge concluded:ย โThe evidence of record substantiates Dr. Steinkrausโ take on the situation.โย [Id.].
Deltaโs treatment of Dr. Petitt became an issue in the context of FAA Administrator Stephen Dicksonโs appointment process due to his failure to disclose to the Senate Commerce Committee his approval of Grahamโs psychiatric directive or the fact that he had been subject to a deposition of several hours. The judge made the following observations concerning Captain Dicksonโs conduct:
โThe Tribunal finds less than credible Captain Dicksonโs deposition testimony as it found many of his responses evasive โฆ His testimony was of value in understanding the leadership culture at [Delta] and its understanding (or lack thereof) of [Deltaโs] managementโs role in its safety management program. His emails make it clear that Respondentโs much touted โopen door policyโ was not as opened as portrayed.โ
Asked to comment on the case, Dr. Petittโs legal counsel, Lee Seham, stated:
โWhat I find both stupefying and worrisome is that, in all this time, Delta has never apologized to Dr. Petitt โ even after Dr. Altmanโs diagnosis was discredited. Worrisome because those responsible for this injustice remain in positions of authority. In my view, in the absence of some intense introspection and accountability, Deltaโs flight operations will continue to be compromised. Safety reporting has to be cultivated, not suppressed.โ