U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx named 10 new members to the high-level board that advises the administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration. Several new members have airline industry connections.
On January 13, Foxx announced the following new members of the FAA Management Advisory Council (MAC): Steve Alterman, president of the Cargo Airline Association; Bill Ayer, Alaska Air Group former chairman and currently chairman of the FAA’s NextGen Advisory Committee; Montie Brewer, former Air Canada president and CEO; Ray Conner, Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and CEO; Craig Fuller, former president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association; Jane Garvey, former FAA administrator, now with Meridiam Infrastructure; Denver Mayor Michael Hancock; Lee Moak, president of the Air Line Pilots Association; John Potter, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority president and CEO; and Gwynne Shotwell, president and CEO of rocket and spacecraft manufacturer SpaceX.
The new members join the three incumbent council members: Victor Mendez, Department of Transportation acting deputy secretary; Air Force Brig. Gen. Steven Shepro, representing the Department of Defense; and Paul Rinaldi, president of the Air Traffic Controllers Association. Previously, the 13-member advisory council had just two airline-connected members.
Hancock, elected Denver’s mayor in 2011, spoke to the NextGen Institute in Washington, D.C., in September. He described how performance-based navigation procedures the FAA and United Airlines developed have improved operations at Denver International Airport, the fifth busiest airport in North America in terms of passenger traffic.
Established by the FAA reauthorization act of 1996, the MAC meets quarterly to advise the FAA administrator in the areas of management, policy, spending and regulations. Members serve three-year terms on a voluntary basis.
“We are at a pivotal time in both the FAA and the aviation industry. These new MAC members will provide essential guidance and input as the FAA moves forward with NextGen and makes critical decisions about the future,” said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta.
