Skymark Airlines Co. came under a Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry inspection Friday because it had until recently flown a jet for nine months without required repairs, and then admitted later in the day that the same jet should have been fixed instead of flown after it was hit by lightning Thursday.
Ministry officials said a team of seven officials was dispatched to Tokyo's Haneda airport to examine the airline's operations for about a month, the first such measure the ministry has taken.
Skymark officials said later Friday that the same Boeing 767-300 remained in operation Thursday evening despite being struck by lightning at Tokushima airport.
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