Investigators with the Civil Aeronautics Authority , a predecessor organization of both the FAA and the NTSB , determined Deciding that both vertical fins and both rudders were missing from the twin-tailed aircraft .

The incident was the second of this type in less than two years , following the structural failure of Southwest Airlines Flight 2294 in 2009 , and led to Causation the FAA increasing Cause_change_of_position_on_a_scale the inspection rate of certain airframes .

The FAA replaced the strikers with non-union workers .

PATCO 's refusal Agree_or_refuse_to_act to endorse Agree_or_refuse_to_act the Democratic candidate stemmed in large part from poor labor relations with the FAA ( the employer of PATCO members ) under the Carter administration and Ronald Reagan 's endorsement of the union and its struggle Hostile_encounter for better conditions during the 1980 election Choosing campaign .

Investigators with the United States Department of Commerce 's Civil Aeronautics Authority ( CAA ) , a predecessor organization to both the FAA and the NTSB , determined Deciding that an intense fire had developed Coming_to_be in the cockpit shortly after the aircraft had departed Departing the airport .