*The US Department of Justice announces the United Airlines will pay $49 million for engaging in a scheme to defraud USPS by submitting false delivery scan data, dubiously accepting millions of Dollars of payments to which it was not entitled, as it contravened the International Commercial Air contracts requirements

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In its efforts at protecting consumers鈥� interests, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced that United Airlines (United) will pay $49 million to resolve criminal fraud charges and civil claims relating to fraud on postal service contracts for transportation of international mail.

According to the non-prosecution agreement and civil settlement agreement, United Airlines entered into International Commercial Air (ICAIR) contracts with the United States Postal Service (USPS), meaning United transported US mail internationally on behalf of USPS, reports OneMileAtATime.

Like most major airlines, United Airlines transports international mail on behalf of USPS.

However, between 2012 and 2015, the company was falsifying its delivery timelines in order to maximise the compensation it got for delivering mail, report stated.

Rather than reporting the actual timeline with which it delivered mail, the airline reported an aspirational timeline that did not reflect reality.

It was gathered that United was obligated to provide barcode scans of mail receptacles to USPS when it took possession of mail, and the time it delivered the mail to intended recipients abroad.

United was entitled to full payment only if accurate mail scans were provided and mail was delivered in a timely fashion, according to report.

However, between 2012 and 2015, United Airlines engaged in a scheme to defraud USPS by submitting false delivery scan data to make it appear that United was complying with ICAIR requirements, when in fact the airline wasn鈥檛. United submitted automated delivery scans that didn鈥檛 correspond to the actual movement of mail.

Because the scans weren鈥檛 connected to the actual delivery of mail, United was overpaid in the process, as it secured millions of Dollars in payments from USPS that it wasn鈥檛 entitled to.

United also admitted that it had concealed problems related to scanning and mail movements that would have subjected the Airlines to financial penalties under the ICAIR contracts, report stated.

According to report, certain individuals at the aviation firm work to conceal United鈥檚 automation efforts from USPS, knowing the data transmitted was fabricated.

It was learnt among other things, the individuals tried to hide the automation practices by revising falsified delivery times to make the automated scans seem less suspicious.

Meanwhile, United entered into a non-prosecution agreement (NPA), and has agreed to pay a sum of $17,271,415 in criminal penalties and disgorgement to resolve the criminal investigation into the fraud scheme; and $32,186,687 as part of a False Claims Act settlement for related conduct.

United has also agreed to report any evidence or allegation of a violation of US fraud laws, and to strengthen its compliance programme, especially with reporting requirements.

As Acting Assistant Attorney-General Nicholas McQuaid of the Justice Department鈥檚 Criminal Division describes this: 鈥淯nited was entrusted by the US Postal Service with fulfilling a critical government function 鈥� the transportation of US mail abroad.

鈥淚nstead of performing this duty with transparency, United defrauded the US Postal Service by providing falsified parcel delivery information over a period of years and accepting millions of dollars of payments to which the company was not entitled. 鈥淭oday鈥檚 resolution emphasises that companies that defraud the government 鈥� no matter the context, contract, or federal programme 鈥� will be held accountable.鈥�

It is also noted that all of this malfeasance happened under Jeff Smisek鈥檚 tenure as CEO of United (he resigned in late 2015).

While he may very well not have known about this specifically, there鈥檚 no denying that this was in line with some of the other behaviour the DOJ stated it saw at the airline.

Smisek鈥檚 tenure as CEO of United is marked with a fair bit of corruption. Famously Smisek also was involved in a bribery scandal, as United operated a once-weekly flight between Newark and Columbia, South Carolina, for the Chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

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