Delta pays $10.5m to settle post office allegations

Delta has agreed to pay $10.5m to settle allegations that it falsified information about deliveries of international mail that it was contracted to carry, including mail sent to US soldiers deployed overseas. The Justice Department said Thursday that Delta was hired by the US Postal Service to collect mail from several locations including Defense Department and State Department installations. Delta is the latest airlines to settle similar accusations. The Atlanta-based airline was supposed to scan mail that it hauled to document when it was delivered. Federal officials accused Delta of falsifying records to avoid penalties for mail that was late or sent to the wrong location. Delta won several contracts for international mail-hauling beginning in 2009, and submitted false records from 2010 to 2016, according to the settlement. Delta did not admit liability, and it was not required to pay the government's costs to investigate and pursue the matter. “With this matter now concluded, we look forward to continuing to move USPS mail and freight for our shared customers across our global network,” the airline said. The head of the Justice Department’s civil division, Brian Boynton, said the settlement showed the department’s commitment to go after contractors who don’t meet their obligations “and misrepresent their failure to perform.”<br/>