Republic Airways CEO Bryan Bedford, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the FAA, will have his nomination hearing next week before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who chairs the committee, announced the hearing will take place on June 11, starting at 10 a.m. EDT.
“The next FAA administrator will need to provide strong and steady leadership to complete modernization projects in a timely manner but also to identify and implement what the future of the FAA and America’s airspace should be, while accommodating new and current users,” Cruz said in a statement. “I look forward to thoroughly evaluating Bryan Bedford to serve as FAA administrator, focusing on his qualifications, and the experience that will be needed to boldly modernize America’s antiquated aviation system.”
The hearing will stream live on the committee’s website.
The FAA has not had a confirmed leader since Trump took office for his second term. Mike Whitaker, who became agency administrator in 2023, resigned January 20 with the change in administrations. FAA administrators are appointed to five-year terms, but it is not unusual for one to step down when the president who nominated them leaves office.
Chris Rocheleau is serving as the agency’s acting administrator.
Trump nominated Bedford in March, citing his depth of experience and readiness to address agency shortcomings like aging technology and a lack of air traffic controllers.
“Bryan will work with our GREAT Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy, to strongly reform the Agency, safeguard our exports, and ensure the safety of nearly one billion annual passenger movements,” Trump wrote on social media at the time.
Challenges Ahead
If ultimately confirmed, Bedford will play a critical role in the rebuilding of the nation’s ATC infrastructure, a major priority for Trump and the Department of Transportation, of which the FAA is a part. The agency has faced intense scrutiny in the wake of a collision between an American Eagle passenger jet and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter in Washington, D.C., in January that killed 67 people.
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A report from The New York Times suggests the ATC facility overseeing Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (KDCA), where the American Eagle flight was set to land, was understaffed.
Problems surfaced again in April when an ATC outage at Newark Liberty International Airport (KEWR) in New Jersey left controllers unable to communicate with airline pilots. The breakdown forced the delay and cancellation of hundreds of flights, made worse by a shortage of controllers at the Philadelphia TRACON that oversees Newark. The DOT is in the process of replacing the faulty connection, while the FAA is training controllers for the Philadelphia center.
The Transportation Department announced in May that it will design and launch new ATC infrastructure within the next three years. The plan calls for the construction of new ATC centers and towers and the replacement of most technology currently used by controllers, including radios, telecommunications systems, and automation programs.
The next FAA administrator will also have to contend with the risk of terrorism and cyberattacks, the expansion of private spaceflight, and the agency’s continued oversight of Boeing, which has faced quality control and safety issues for several years.
Bedford joined Republic as president and CEO in 1999. He previously served as president and CEO of Mesaba Holdings, operator of Mesaba Airlines, and Business Express Airlines.
