As has been rumored for months, Politico is reporting President Joe Biden will nominate FAA and industry veteran Mike Whitaker as the agency’s next administrator on Thursday (Sept. 7). Whitaker’s name first came up in May, a couple of months after the former nominee Phil Washington withdrew following a rough ride in the Senate confirmation process. Washington, the CEO of Denver International Airport, was criticized on both sides of the aisle for his lack of direct aviation experienced and was also tainted by indirect involvement in a corruption scandal in Los Angeles, where he ran the transit system. Whitaker spent 15 years at United Airlines before becoming the FAA’s deputy administrator in 2013. He oversaw the NextGen ATC modernization while in that post and left for the private sector in 2016. He is currently the chief operating officer of Supernal, an advanced air mobility company.
