FAA Admin

-What are the qualifications of John Dunkin (President Trump's pilot)?

This should be an interesting post. On January 7, 2018 Michael Huerta; after over six years as FAA Administrator was replaced by Daniel Elwell. Michael Huerta took the position from Randy Babbitt who resigned on December 6, 2011. Huerta was acting administrator from 2011-2013 when he was finally confirmed administrator. His term was to last five years and on January 6, 2018 his term ended. This created a void for the position and Daniel Elwell was appointed acting administrator. Now a permanent administrator is needed. Trump has nominated his private pilot John Dunkin. This is the second time we have seen John Dunkins name thrown around. Back in February 2017, during a meeting with top airline executives he said, “my pilot, he is a smart guy, and he knows what’s going on.” (Trump, 2017) John has been flying since the age of 15. There is no doubt he is a competent pilot. He has flown Trumps personal Boeing 757 all over the globe. But is he a competent administrator? Dunkin has been Trumps pilot since 1989 and has managed airline and corporate flight departments. (Mighty Planes, 2013) He also oversaw Trumps campaign fleet. Seeing as I can’t find any information on what airline he managed or corporate flight department besides Trumps I can’t say if he is competent in that way. I can say that it is a little bit conflict of interest. Seeing as he is the Presidents pilot and he agrees with the privatization of ATC. It will be interesting to see how this story plays out.

-Who are the other candidates for FAA Administrator and what are their qualifications?

Another candidate is current acting administrator Daniel Elwell. He earned his wings after graduating from the Air Force academy and racking up more than 6,000 hours in civilian and military operations. He was an airline pilot with American Airlines for 16 years. Piloting the DC-10, MD-80, and Boeing 757/767. From 2008-2013 he was the Vice President for the Aerospace Industries Association. He ten became the Senior Vice President for Safety, Security, and Operations at Airlines for America. He then became Deputy Administrator and on January 7, 2018 was named Acting Administrator (Transportation.gov, 2018).

Another candidate is Bobby Sturgell. He has a similar path as Elwell. Graduated from the Naval Academy. He flew for United Airlines, flying the Boeing 757/767. He was the Deputy Administrator from 2003-2007 when he was appointed Acting Administrator from 2007-2009. He is currently the Senior Vice President of Washington Operations for Rockwell Collins.

-Pick two past FAA Administrators. What was their qualifications?

The most recent would be Michael Huerta. His qualifications include commissioner of New Yorks’ department of ports, executive director of the Port of San Francisco, Managing Director with the Salt Lake Organizing Committee, Group President of the Transportation Solutions Group at Affiliated Computer Services. In 2010 he became Deputy Administrator and in 2011 became Acting Administrator. In 2013 he became confirmed Administrator.

Randy Babbitt was the Administrator from 2009-2011. His term is shrouded by his drunk driving arrest in 2011. But before that he was an airline pilot for Eastern Airlines for 25 years. He also was the Executive Administrator for the Air Line Pilots Association from 1987-1990. In 1990 he was the President of ALPA. In 2011 he was arrested for drunk driving which the charge was dropped in 2012 as the arresting officer had a hunch that he was drunk. Not enough evidence to pull him over. Also, a video of the arrest was shown in court and it showed that he was not driving in the wrong direction that the officer said he was (Jouvenal, 2012). In 2012 he was hired at Southwest Airlines as the Vice President of Labor Relations.

-What is the job description of FAA Administrator?

The FAA Administrator, “is responsible for the safety and efficiency of the largest aerospace system in the world — a system that operates more than 50,000 flights per day. He oversees a $16.4 billion-dollar budget, more than 47,000 employees, and is focused on ensuring the agency and its employees are the best prepared and trained professionals to meet the growing demands and requirements of the industry.” (FAA, 2018)

-In terms of your career and based upon the job description above, do you feel that it matters who the FAA Administrator is? Why or why not?

I do believe it matters who is chosen as FAA Administrator. I do not think just anyone can run a whole government agency without some prior experience in a high leadership role. This being said I do not believe John Dunkin is fit to be the FAA Administrator. I believe he lacks the experience of an administrator. I believe Daniel Elwell should be appointed based on his past and that he has been the second in command since June 2017.

References

Daniel K. Elwell. (2018, January 10). Retrieved March 3, 2018, from https://www.faa.gov/about/key_officials/elwell/

Laris, M., & III, A. H. (2018, February 27). As President Trump puts longtime personal pilot on shortlist to head FAA, agency faces biggest challenges in decades. Retrieved March 03, 2018, from https://www.denverpost.com/2018/02/27/john-dunkin-faa-short-list/

(2013, June 9). Retrieved March 03, 2018, from https://www.smithsonianchannel.com/shows/mighty-planes/trump-757/1003002/3398551

Jouvenal, J. (2012, May 10). Drunken driving charge dismissed against former FAA chief Randy Babbitt. Retrieved March 03, 2018, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/drunk-driving-charges-dismissed-against-former-faa-chief-randy-babbitt/2012/05/10/gIQA0SbuFU_story.html?utm_term=.128fbd03b4e2

Deputy FAA Administrator Dan Elwell To Serve as Acting FAA Administrator. (2018, January 05). Retrieved March 03, 2018, from https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/dot0118