The FAA official paused for a long time, especially for prime time television, as he groped for a response.

Dateline NBC's David Bloom had just told him, "Our research shows that for every $100 that the FAA fines a commuter airline they actually collect $12. That doesn't seem to have much teeth."

The moment culminated a long and exhausting data dance with the FAA.

The story started six months earlier, when we decided to probe commuter airline safety. I knew the FAA's Oklahoma City office kept an inspections database, so I asked for it. They seemed cooperative. I didn't need to file a FOIA. After waiting several weeks, I received an inspections database.

But I discovered there was no information on violations or fines. I called Jack Price, the FAA point man in Oklahoma City. He said "Oh, you want to know what they found when they inspected." I groaned.

After several more weeks, I received a version of the Enforcement Information System (EIS) database. It tracks every fine and violation the FAA dishes out, including the proposed fine and final settlement. There was only one problem: many of the names of the carriers were missing. I called Price again. He told me to call someone in Washington. About 50 phone calls later I discovered Jack had left out the "violator" field.

Several months went by. But in the meantime, I found valuable information in the EIS database. It included case numbers, dates, locations and fines. I used that to send a number of FOIA letters to get the case files of those fined for the biggest amount. The most important information comes from the FAA field office handling a case.

I soon found something remarkable about Mesa airlines, the largest independent commuter in the country. It seemed the airline went nine months using substandard parts in many of its planes. To make sure no one found out, Mesa falsified records. The coverup unravelled when an engine failed in flight, forcing an emergency landing.

That wasn't the only time the FAA accused Mesa of flying "unairworthy" planes. Cracks, dents, missing rivets and numerous other incidents stretched back 10 years. The database revealed a wide array of problems with maintenance, flight operations and security.

When we started talking to pilots, we found near unanimity both at the airline and within the industry that Mesa had serious safety problems. We couldn't convince former Mesa managers to go on camera. Several Mesa pilots did agree to talk if they were disguised. They told viewers about safety problems and predicted a crash if things didn't change.

We used the Mesa story as part of a larger probe of problems in the commuter airline industry.

We covered a lot of ground using standard paper trail reporting, but the databases set the story apart. NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) revealed pilots who fell asleep at the controls. The National Transportation Safety Board's investigations database showed every crash during the past 20 years, including several at Mesa. The FAA Service Difficulty Report (SDR), showed 13 in-flight engine failures at Mesa during a recent two-year period.

When I finally got a complete and updated version of the EIS from Price, I compared the proposed fines with the final settlements, and discovered that during the past five years the FAA reduced fines against commuters by 88 percent.

When the camera rolled, the FAA representative in charge of commuter airline safety fumbled for a response. After his moment of silence, he said, "I think the FAA does have teeth. We do surveillance. If we find something that shows us that there isn't full compliance with the regulations or company procedures we take action. I really can't comment on the terms of the fines that are suggested and what the final settlement..."

Where to get the data

Enforcement Information System (EIS): Call Jack Price at (405) 954-7156, Federal Aviation Administration Data Processing Division in Oklahoma City, OK

NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS): Call Bill Reynard at (415) 969-3969, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, near Menlo Park, CA

NTSB Accident and Incident Investigations Database: call Stan Smith at (202) 382-6538, National Transportation Safety Board in Washington.

David Hinchman can be reached at (202) 885-4405.