The Assignment that the Senate bestowed on Mr. Whitaker by giving him the key to 800 Independence
Below is an article trumpeting the Senate’s confirmation of Michael Whitaker as the FAA Administrator effective now until October 14, 2028, by a vote of 98-0 rare unanimity in these absurdly politicized days. Perhaps the Senators recognized that the chair which this nominee is now appointed is surrounded by ramparts from the outside of the office and internal impediments– both will test Mr. Whitaker’s constitution, and he knows that.
Few would accept the significant challenges posed by leading this 43,992 person aviation safety organization. This chart is a broad summary of the enormity of his task:
Those dimensions make it clear that the new Administrator (AOA-1) will have a 24/7/365 with a geographic span of multiple time zones. The FAA CEO is to run a large operational organization (ATO) with responsibility to control flights over 29 million square miles that make up the U.S. national airspace system (NAS), but he knew that. His testimony also recognized that there is a significant deficit in staffing of the women and men who perform these critical aviation safety services.
The difficulty of this assignment is exacerbated by previously failed efforts to recruit new controllers, by an academy with throughput capacity less than this urgent need, and by “help” from the executive and congressional budget staffs that fail to recognize that the funds are required for real time safety work. Past skepticism about bureaucracy flows have dulled the sharp pencils for these operational needs.
But Mr. Whitaker knows that and is aware of the long, tortured history of modernization of the ATC system.
Into a management vein, the 19 month absence of a Senate confirmed Administrator can be attributed to an inordinate number of SENIOR FAA career staff positions occupied with acting individual, as shown in this months old chart:
The impact of this condition is really significant as described in this previous post. The depth of these temporary fillings extends well beyond this chart. The cast of political appointees may require some thought. It is not uncommon for the individuals appointed to these positions by President Biden and Secretary Buttigieg to consider resigning—the jobs can be exhausting, private sector needs their knowledge, and the new Administrator may not be a good match.
What may not be as evident to the new Administrator is that FOB 10A and B and facilities around the country are not heavily occupied. Recent estimates place the percentage of all federal employees teleworking as high as 45%. Recognizing this pan government concern, “White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients said in an email to Cabinet officials…that increasing the amount of in-person work is “critical” to federal agencies’ workplace culture and to meeting missions, although agencies will continue to make use of telework and authorize some workers to work fully remotely.”
The FAA has a substantial workload that may be better dealt with if the staff can coordinate with co-workers in the same office and/or building. The flow may be better managed if the supervisor is visually aware that one of her/his staff has some slack time. For example, one of the agency’s most significant missions is the issuance of safety information in the form of proposed and final rules. This process requires the careful consideration of comments, development of responses (including amendments or clarifications). Coordination in the midst of an NPRM usually involves several different technical disciplines, legal drafting/refinements and economic evaluations. Direct person-to-person and often multiple iterations are essential to this work product- a frown, a quick back-and-forth and other interpersonal dialogues lend themselves to better, quicker results. One measure of the FAA’s workload and possible a surrogate of delay due to remote working is this chart from a Federal Register search:
While this may be primarily a headquarters phenomenon, the field offices appear to have the same malaise. Here are the results of search as to these areas of FAA delays:
- The FAA has been experiencing backlogs in processing aircraft registration renewals, certificates of waiver or authorization, and part 107 waivers due to a high number of transactions and limited staff. The AVERAGE PROCESSING TIME FOR THESE APPLICATIONS HAS BEEN BETWEEN 60 TO 90 DAYS, but it may vary depending on the complexity and completeness of the request.
- There are currently 380 Part 135 applications pending as of June 30, 2023. This number includes both new and amended applications for air carrier and operator certificates.
- Curiously, the Airports AIP requests look to have set record number of grants during the 2023 calendar year. That’s interesting since the ARP staff was not expanded to assure that these awards of federal taxpayer funds meet the strict statutory and regulation qualifications for such disbursements???
These objective data points infer that there are a number of unhappy aviation stakeholders outside of the Honorable Mr. Whitaker’s new office. The angry citizens, who believe that the safety organization is beholden to the airlines and unions, are vociferous in their demands. The entrepreneurs, who anxiously want to bring aerial innovation to the economy, speak with frustration at the delays in FAA processing of their UAS, AAM, UAM, eVTOL requests. The technical world, seeking to improve the ATC computers (hardware and software + communications), remote towers and autonomous control for these new lower altitude aircraft, see the benefits to be added to these systems held back by those uncomfortable with the new technologies. These are some of the people on the external ramparts. The voices from the Cannons on the Hill speak the loudest.
Mr. Whitaker, all in aviation, are most thankful for your service and are there to support you.
Senate confirms FAA leader after 19-month vacancy
Michael Whitaker, then the nominee to be the next administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, testifies on Capitol Hill on October 4, 2023 in Washington, DC.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images/FILE
CNN —
The Senate on Tuesday confirmed Michael Whitaker to a five-year term running the Federal Aviation Administration. {by statute1 he holds this office through October 24, 2028, even if a new Administration wants to replace the confirmed individual.}
Whitaker is a former Obama-era deputy FAA administrator and said at his confirmation hearing earlier this month that his past “time at FAA gives me some real advantage” taking the top job. Most recently he was an executive at a company developing electric air taxis, and he previously served in senior roles at several airlines, including United Airlines. Now, Whitaker takes the reins at the FAA as the agency, in his words, “FACES BIG CHALLENGES.”
Among his first priorities, industry officials say, is providing a steady, consistent hand atop FAA, which oversees aviation safety, air traffic control and aircraft certification. The FAA has come under scrutiny after a series of airliner close calls on US runways, flight disruptions linked to air traffic control understaffing and the killing of 346 people in Boeing 737 MAX crashes after the FAA certified the plane as safe.
Whitaker has also said he would prioritize technological and other improvements for “the aviation system of the future.” “When I was at the FAA just a few years ago drones were new, commercial space launches were rare and flying taxis were still only in cartoons,” Whitaker said at his confirmation hearing. “All of this has changed and it requires that the agency look forward, adapt quickly and execute a plan for the future.”
He has support from a variety of aviation industry groups, including those representing airlines, pilots and airline passengers. He is the Biden administration’s second FAA chief nominee. The first, Denver airport CEO Phil Washington, withdrew his name over criticism of his limited aviation experience and link to a political corruption investigation. The post was vacated in March 2022 when Steve Dickson, who was nominated by President Donald Trump, stepped down midway through his five-year term. The agency has been run by a series of interim administrators, most recently the deputy transportation secretary.
CNN’s Morgan Rimmer contributed to this report.
