President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the FAA does not have the commercial pilot license he long claimed in his official biography, according to a report from POLITICO.
Bryan Bedford’s bio page on the website of Republic Airways, which he has led as CEO since 1999, once said he “holds commercial, multi-engine, and instrument ratings.” But the FAA database that contains information about pilot credentials does not list a commercial license for Bedford, POLITICO found.
The language of Bedford’s biography was altered and the word “commercial” dropped after the news outlet’s inquiries.
Bedford is a licensed private pilot with an instrument and multi-engine rating, according to the FAA’s Airmen Registry.
In a statement, the U.S. Department of Transportation said Bedford passed “written and oral exams” for becoming a pilot with a commercial carrier but had not “personally nor publicly claimed to be a commercial airline pilot.”
“Bryan never misrepresented his credential; it was an administrative error that was immediately corrected,” the statement continued.
Bedford did not respond to POLITICO’s requests for comment on the matter.
During his confirmation hearing last week, Bedford also shared that he pilots a Cirrus aircraft.
Question of Credentials
The Air Current first raised concerns about the apparent discrepancy between Bedford’s biography and his credentials in a report in April.
“Bedford is a pilot himself, though not a commercial pilot, as he has sometimes claimed to be,” the publication wrote at the time.
POLITICO cited other company and industry webpages where Bedford was described as a commercial pilot, as well as a 2019 event where he was introduced by a speaker as holding “commercial, multi-engine, and instrument pilot ratings.”
It is not clear if POLITICO’s report will meaningfully alter Bedford’s chances of confirmation. Republicans hold a majority in the Senate, and several GOP senators have spoken out enthusiastically in support of the president’s nominee.
Bedford is also backed by much of the industry, including major airlines and their trade groups.
Democrats and pilots’ unions, however, have raised concerns about Bedford’s potential support for weakening the 1,500-hour experience standard for airline pilots. At a Senate committee hearing last week, Bedford would not commit to maintaining the rule during questioning from Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois.
Bedford did push back on the idea that he supports commercial flights with a single pilot, saying those discussions are “a long ways away” even with new flight technology on the horizon.
