I am terribly sorry if this has already been discussed but I read the FAA pulled the CVR to review and use to determine what happened on the flight and to determine what action up to and including certificate action they will take on this crew. While I feel the crew had poor judgement on this flight I also believe the FAA needs to play by the rules. FAR 135.359(H) states;
h) In the event of an accident or occurrence requiring immediate notification of the National Transportation Safety Board under Part 830 of its regulations, which results in the termination of the flight, the certificate holder shall keep the recorded information for at least 60 days or, if requested by the Administrator or the Board, for a longer period. Information obtained from the record is used to assist in determining the cause of accidents or occurrences in connection with investigations under Part 830. The Administrator does not use the record in any civil penalty or certificate action.
Am I just tired or isn’t illegal to use the CVR data for certificate action, just because they wrote the law does not mean they don’t have to abide by them.