That's the market reality. I have every certification required by the FAA for this class of aircraft, Malcolm said. And the three firms that wouldn't touch it are the same ones who couldn't figure out the hydraulic failure that grounded it in the first place. Be that as it may, she shrugged one shoulder like the conversation was already over. I'm offering you 45,000.
I'd encourage you to accept it. I'm not going to accept it. Malcolm, my invoice is $286,400. That is what your contract requires you to pay. Her expression shifted.
Something cooled behind her eyes. You should speak with an attorney before you decide to make this adversarial, she said. Sterling Crown has an excellent litigation team. We handle disputes with contractors regularly. These things can drag on for quite a long time, and smaller operations don't always survive the legal overhead.
The room was dead quiet now. The two attorneys didn't move. The executive stared at the table. Malcolm looked at Victoria Sterling for a long moment. Then he closed the binder.
He picked it up. He reached into his jacket pocket, removed the hanger access key, the same key he'd carried for 43 days, and placed it on the table in front of her. The hanger is secure, he said. The maintenance log is current through yesterday's inspection. My signature is not on the airworthiness certificate.
I'll leave my contact information with your receptionist. He turned toward the door. Mr. Hayes. Her voice was sharp now, not smooth.
That aircraft needs to fly on Thursday. I have meetings in New York. If you walk out of this room without signing the certificate, I won't be signing the certificate," Malcolm said. He didn't turn around. "Not for 45,000.
Not for 286. Not until every outstanding question in that maintenance log has been resolved." "What outstanding question?" "You just said the restoration was complete." He stopped. He turned around slowly. "The restoration is complete," he said. The aircraft is not ready to fly.
Silence. That is not the same thing, he said. I restored every system I was contracted to restore, but during the process, I identified a component inside the directional flight control assembly that I cannot certify. The serial number does not appear in any FAA approved manufacturer database. I flagged it in the maintenance log.
I reported it to your fleet coordinator 3 weeks ago, and I received no response. Victoria's jaw tightened. "You're talking about one part? I'm talking about a part that controls the directional movement of a $48 million aircraft at 40,000 ft." Malcolm said, "One part in the wrong place is one too many." Other mechanics have reviewed that aircraft. Other mechanics reviewed the restoration scope.