Department of Transportation, Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration

Department/Agency: Department of Transportation

Position:

Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration

Executive Schedule: Executive Level II - Presidential Appointment with Senate Confirmation

Major Responsibilities:

Regulates commercial and private aviation
Oversees world’s largest air traffic control system and network of airports

Key Competencies and Preferred Qualifications:

Management skills
Aviation industry experience
Experience as civilian or military pilot a plus

Insight:

The job of Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is to ensure the safety of civilian air travel. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, led to major changes at airports, with responsibility for airport screening shifting from the FAA to a new Transportation Security Administration in the Department of Homeland Security. The shift freed the FAA to focus exclusively on the logistical challenges of addressing air traffic control, aircraft maintenance and the industry’s economic uncertainties amidst fluctuating demand and skyrocketing fuel prices. The airline industry has seen repeated mergers and some closures as companies struggled to keep flying in hard times.

Congress in 2003 endorsed the concept of an air transportation modernization plan that the FAA calls NextGen to keep planes moving in skies already crowded. Air traffic is projected to double by 2025. “Our current air traffic control system will not be able to manage this growth,” according to the FAA. “NextGen is a transformation of the National Airspace System (NAS), including our national system of airports, which uses 21st century technologies to ensure future safety, capacity and environmental needs are met.” But the blueprint is costly, and Congress has balked at fully funding NextGen, which could cost as much as $20 billion by completion in 2025.

Robert J. Sturgell, a former Top Gun naval aviation instructor and attorney, became acting FAA administrator in 2007. “As administrations change and budgets begin to tighten, it’s incumbent on all of us to keep the pressure on implementing NextGen,” Sturgell said in a November 2008 speech. “Everyone in the aviation community has an interest in making sure it’s done right, and it’s done on time.”

The Bush administration advocated new user fees on airports on airlines to fund NextGen in addition to taxpayer dollars. Unions, commercial airlines, pilots and a majority of Congress balked at that approach. There was a standoff on passing the FAA budget for 2009. That was finally resolved with a stopgap budget which leaves the funding of NextGen for the next Congress and the Obama administration to resolve.

Marion Blakey, Sturgell’s predecessor and former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, warned in August 2007 that “without NextGen, the historic delays that plague us now will soon be known as the good old days.”

Blakey went from the FAA executive suite to head the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), which lobbies the FAA on behalf of the aviation industry. Critics used the job move to promote tougher rules on federal officials defecting to the private sector. "Under the Bush administration, the revolving door has spun out of control," Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) charged.

The FAA leadership has also come under fire for its relationship with the commercial airline industry. The agency revamped its regulatory strategy to take a “customer service” approach to airlines. Critics say that the move undercut inspectors whose job it is to make sure airlines meet maintenance standards, exposing effective inspectors to customer service complaints from airlines reluctant to comply with the rules.

"The Customer Service Initiative, to me, is clearly intended to say, 'We are not going to regulate, really. You are our customers, and we wouldn't want you to be upset with our scrutiny,' " Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.), a member of the transportation committee, told USA Today.

The next FAA administrator faces a stiff fight for the funding to address the challenges of modern civilian aviation. The costly NextGen project is just one aspect of the FAA’s mission to keep the skies running safely — and profitably.

Key Relationships – Within the Department or Agency:

Organizational Chart

Secretary of Transportation
Chief Counsel
Chief Financial Officer
Assistant Administrator for Aviation Policy and Environment
Other assistant administrators

Key Relationships – Within the Government:

Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Commissioner, U.S. Customs Service
Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration

Key Relationships – Outside the Government:

International Air Transport Association
Aerospace Industries Association of America
Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association
General Aviation Manufacturers Association
Airline Pilots Association International
National Association of State Aviation Officials
Individual state and local aviation and other officials

Nomination Referred to:

Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation

Current Position Profile:
1. J. Randolph Babbitt (Confirmed: May 21, 2009). Former pilot and aviation consultant. Former Partner, Aviation Practice, Oliver Wyman Group, Consulting Services, Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. Former Chairman and CEO, Eclat Consulting, Oliver Wyman Group, Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc.

Recent Position Profiles:

2. Robert A. Sturgell, J.D. (Acting, 2007- 2009). Deputy FAA administrator since 2003. Former senior policy advisor at the National Transportation Safety Board. Former United Airlines pilot and flight operations supervisor. Practiced aviation law. Naval aviator and instructor.

3. Marion Blakey, M.A. (2002-2007). Former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board. Former administrator of the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Held posts at White House, National Endowment for the Humanities and Education and Commerce departments. Founder of a public affairs consulting firm.

4. Jane Garvey, M.A. (1997-2000). Former deputy administrator of the Federal Highway Administration. Former director of Boston's Logan International Airport and commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Public Works. Former high school and college teacher.