Micro Bird, the new joint venture of Blue Bird and Girardin to manufacture and market the Type A school buses, is recalling an undisclosed number of vehicles that fail to comply with FMVSS 217.

NHTSA was notified last week of the recall campaign that targets model year 2006 through 2010 Micro Bird and Girardin G5 school buses that are equipped with "T-slider" or panoramic push-out windows with two-release mechanisms, one on each side. Micro Bird said the window handle base spacer plate can tear due to the rotation of the exterior window frame. During a crash, the OEM added, passengers could be thrown from the vehicle or be incapable of opening the bus emergency exits.

The recall notice informed customers and dealers of the problem, but NHTSA had yet to receive a remedy for the the fix or a schedule of when the problem would be corrected. More information on the recall can be obtained by calling Micro Bird at (819) 477-2012. In addition, Girardin issued the recall campaign number of 10-038-WIU.