In a rare show of unanimity, the U.S. Senate on Tuesday voted 98-0 to confirm the nomination of Michael Whitaker to serve as FAA administrator for a five-year term. That vote followed a procedural vote of 94-0 to invoke cloture, or cut off debate, that was held to ensure that the nomination could not get hung up by other issues.
Whitaker steps into a position that has been held on an acting basis by Polly Trottenberg and before that Billy Nolen since April 1, 2022, after the previously confirmed FAA administrator, Steve Dickson, left halfway through his term.
Whitaker was the second nominee to have been offered by the White House since that time, after the initial choice, Phil Washington, withdrew from consideration after it became clear that he did not have the support to win confirmation.
While Washington was CEO of Denver International Airport, the chief complaint about his nomination, primarily from the Republican ranks, surrounded a lack of aviation background overall.
However, Whitaker, who has a lengthy aviation resume, garnered wide support, not only from both sides of the aisle but throughout the industry and even from the government rank-and-file. In the Senate, Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) remarked that “Michael Whitaker’s overwhelming confirmation demonstrates the Senate's commitment to getting aviation right. There is a lot to do on FAA staffing, technology upgrades, and safety improvements and Whitaker is the right person to lead it.”
Her counterpart in the House, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair Sam Graves (R-Missouri), issued and joint statement with aviation subcommittee Chair Garret Graves (R-Louisiana) that “Mr. Whitaker’s confirmation will provide much needed stability and certainty for the agency and the broader aviation industry as a whole.”
As a testament to the urgency of putting a confirmed administrator in place, Whitaker’s confirmation occurred less than two months after the White House announced his nomination, which is swift for the upper chamber. Nominations can be lengthier processes since they involve vetting periods that include a series of meetings between the nominees and Senators involved with the agency and typically a series of questions and answers filed ahead of a confirmation hearing.
But Whitaker is a known person on Capitol Hill and within the industry, having served as FAA deputy administrator under the Obama Administration. He also has decades of airline operational experience with both United Airlines and Trans World Airlines, and more recently had moved into the advanced air mobility realm as COO of Supernal.
During his confirmation hearing held earlier this month, Whitaker outlined his priorities for the agency, including enhancing safety, preparing for future technologies, and boosting the agency’s talent pipeline, particularly with air traffic controllers.
He takes the helm of the FAA after a period of transition, when several leadership posts had turned over and the agency has been trying to rebuild and expand its workforce post-pandemic, particularly on the air traffic controller side.
But the agency has been under intense pressure, both from Capitol Hill and in the court of public opinion, since the Boeing Max crashes and after a series of high-profile “close calls” occurred this year.