Administrator Goes In Depth on the FAA’s Next Act

Bryan Bedford discusses ATC modernization, MOSAIC, and hot-button issues facing general aviation.

Ryan Ewing

Friday, July 17, 2026 at 08:00 AM ET

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Edited By:

Travis Tingle

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford, sitting down for an interview with Firecrown Media Aviation Division president Ryan Ewing, is replacing decade-long plans with Flight Plan 2026 for measurable results.

Key Takeaways:

Bryan Bedford, the new FAA administrator, is driving the agency to accelerate its agenda, aligning with President Trump's push for rapid innovation and measurable progress, operating at "the speed of Trump."
The FAA is focused on aggressively modernizing air traffic control with a "brand-new" system by 2028, incorporating advanced automation, AI, and machine learning, while also streamlining controller training.
Key initiatives include the MOSAIC shift to performance-based regulations to unlock general aviation innovation and addressing concerns about airport landing fees impacting the safe use of ADS-B.
Bedford identifies the rebuilding of outdated brick-and-mortar air traffic facilities as the most significant, currently unfundable, infrastructure challenge.

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Bryan Bedford took over leadership of the FAA in July 2025 after a long career in commercial aviation, including senior roles at Republic Airways and Frontier Airlines. He is an instrument-rated pilot, an aircraft owner, and one of the few recent agency leaders to arrive in Washington, D.C., with direct experience in both a general aviation cockpit and the airline C-suite.

Some in aviation may also remember him from an appearance on reality TV’s Undercover Boss, a fitting footnote for an executive whose management style has long emphasized seeing operations up close rather than from a distance. So close, in fact, that Bedford can be seen in the show servicing lavatories on a Frontier Airbus jet.