Acting Administrator Michael Huerta to serve as FAA Administrator.

RotorAndWing

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Yesterday, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Acting Administrator Michael Huerta to serve as FAA Administrator.

Statement from Secretary LaHood:
"Michael Huerta has stepped up to the plate and done an exemplary job in leading the largest and safest aviation system in the world. I am very pleased that President Obama has nominated him to lead the FAA as the next Administrator. The safety of the traveling public is our number one priority, and Michael has shown the utmost commitment to moving our aviation system to the next level of safety and efficiency.”


Excerpt from White House Press Release
March 27, 2012
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:
· Michael Peter Huerta – Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration, Department of Transportation

Michael Peter Huerta is currently Deputy Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and has been serving as Acting Administrator of the FAA since December 2011. Previously, Mr. Huerta was group president of the Transportation Solutions Group of Affiliated Computer Services, Inc., a technology services provider supporting transportation agencies worldwide, and managing director of Transportation Communication for the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. He served as Chief of Staff of the Department of Transportation (DOT) from 1997 to 1998 and as Associate Deputy Secretary in the Office of Intermodalism at DOT from 1992 to 1997. Mr. Huerta was Commissioner of the New York City Department of Ports from 1989 to 1993 and Executive Director at the Port of San Francisco from 1986 to 1989. He earned a B.A. from University of California-Riverside and an M.P.A. from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University.
 
Seems like a logical enough move. I don't know anything about Huerta, though.
 
Yesterday, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Acting Administrator Michael Huerta to serve as FAA Administrator.

FAA Administrator should not be an entry level position in aviation.
 
He has no former experience in aviation? I retract my previous statement. :eek:

None. Majored in political science, worked for ports of NY and San Francisco before US DOT, holds no pilot certificates.
 
holds no pilot certificates.
The precedent for FAA administrator not being a licensed pilot was already set in 1997 when Jane Garvey was appointed to the office.
 
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The precedent for FAA administrator not being a licensed pilot was already set in 1997 when Jane Garvey was appointed to the office.

Yes, I know. But while her pre-FAA aviation background was limited, she was director of Logan Airport, Huerta has none.
 
None. Majored in political science, worked for ports of NY and San Francisco before US DOT, holds no pilot certificates.

I KNEW I was making a mistake when I used the word "logical" in reference to an Obama nomination. Oh well, live and learn. ;) :stirpot:
 
I'm not sure what to make of "Associate Deputy Secretary in the Office of Intermodalism.
 
I'm not sure what to make of "Associate Deputy Secretary in the Office of Intermodalism.

government03.jpg
 
I'm not sure what to make of "Associate Deputy Secretary in the Office of Intermodalism.

Means a nice cushy job, I think.

Did some computer programming for a railroad a zillion years ago, where I learned that intermodal transport is moving stuff using two or more kinds of carriers, such as by train and ship, or train and truck, or even all three. Like these orange carriers which can be moved by ship, train, and truck with no need to transfer their cargo - just move the whole box:

Hyundai_train.jpg
 
Means a nice cushy job, I think.

Did some computer programming for a railroad a zillion years ago, where I learned that intermodal transport is moving stuff using two or more kinds of carriers, such as by train and ship, or train and truck, or even all three. Like these orange carriers which can be moved by ship, train, and truck with no need to transfer their cargo - just move the whole box:

Hyundai_train.jpg

I worked for an Intermodal transportation company. Rail/Air/Pipeline/Road and Sea.
 
Me, too. I remember Ms. Garvey. I wonder if anyone asked John Goglia if he'd accept the job -- now that would be quite a choice.

And when did the pendulum really start to swing to where we are now?
 
None. Majored in political science, worked for ports of NY and San Francisco before US DOT, holds no pilot certificates.

Oh that dude.

He's the talking head in the DOT film made after the boat rescues from Manhattan Island on 9/11 who makes it sound like the whole thing was a DOT/Merchant Marine School undertaking.

Meanwhile, Tom Hanks puts together the Operation Boatlift video that shows it was a combined effort of everything afloat in the river that day.

He's perfect for the job. What a rah-rah government suck-up weenie. Sigh.
 
Yes, I know. But while her pre-FAA aviation background was limited, she was director of Logan Airport, Huerta has none.

If we're going to count being director of an airport as aviation experience, then we should count being deputy administrator of the FAA too.

While one would think that it's advantageous to have an administrator who is a pilot, from the reaction to Babbitt's departure, it seems that it's not a cure-all. :dunno:
 
What objective yardstick is any FAA Administrator appointee measured by anyway? How do you know if one succeeded or failed?
 
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