Six New, High-Powered FAA Management Advisory Council
Members
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Management Advisory
Council (MAC) got six new appointees yesterday. The MAC counsels
FAA Administrator Marion C. Blakey and senior agency leadership on
management, policy, spending and regulatory matters.
"These appointments
represent a collection of aviation all-stars for the FAA to draw
upon," said DoT Secretary Mineta. "These individuals are highly
respected within aviation and can offer the insight and innovative
ideas to help us shape a safer and more efficient airspace system
for the 21st Century."
The MAC will help the FAA achieve its goal of becoming a
performance-based organization, a goal recommended in 1997 by the
National Civil Aviation Review Commission, which Secretary Mineta
chaired.
The new members appointed to the MAC are: Angela Gittens,
Miami International Airport director; Alan R. Mulally, The Boeing
Co. executive vice president and president and CEO of Boeing
Commercial Airplanes; David Neeleman, JetBlue Airways Corp. CEO;
Robert L. Crandall, American Airlines retired chief executive
officer (CEO) and president; Paul E. Schoelhammer, retired
partner/director of government affairs at Zuckert, Scoutt and
Rasenberger, LLP; and Jim Smith, Newport News/Williamsburg
International Airport executive director and Peninsula Airport
Commission member.
"The FAA is fortunate to have such a strong, deep source of
aviation experience to guide us toward a more performance-based
organization," said Blakey. "The MAC will be reviewing our work to
meet the quarterly targets of the FAA's new strategic plan and
helping us develop an ever safer next-generation aviation
system."
Created by the Department of Transportation's aviation
reauthorization act of 1996, the MAC meets quarterly to assess and
advise the FAA on the agency's performance. The panel members serve
in a volunteer capacity and retain their private sector positions.
The new appointments join incumbent MAC members:
Ed Bolen, General Aviation Manufacturers Association president and
MAC chairman; Randy Babbitt, Eclat Consulting senior partner; and
Geoff Crowley, Air Wisconsin president and CEO.
Gittens has held several airport executive
positions prior to joining Miami International Airport.
Previously, she was vice president of TBI Airport Management, a
company that manages airport facilities under contract. In 1997 she
served with Secretary Mineta as a member of the National Civil
Aviation Review Commission. Gittens began her aviation career as
deputy director for business and finance at San Francisco
International Airport and earned a bachelor's degree from Fairleigh
Dickinson University.
Mulally became president of Boeing Group
commercial airplanes in 1998 and chief executive officer for the
business unit in 2001. He was named president of Boeing
Information, Space and Defense Systems and senior vice president of
The Boeing Co. in 1997. Previously, Mulally was senior vice
president of airplane development for the Boeing Commercial
Airplanes Group beginning in 1994. Mulally joined Boeing in
1969. He holds bachelor of science and master of science degrees in
aeronautical and astronautical engineering from the University of
Kansas, and earned a master's in management from the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology.
Neeleman formed JetBlue in 1999 and has an
extensive career in the airline industry dating back to 1984 when
he co-founded a low-fare carrier called Morris Air. As President of
Morris Air, Neeleman implemented the industry's first electronic
ticketing system and pioneered a home reservation system that is
now the foundation of JetBlue's unique call center - all calls to
JetBlue's reservation number are handled by reservationists working
at home.
Crandall retired from American Airlines in 1998
with 25 years of service. He was named president of American in
1980, and in 1985 was given the additional titles of chairman and
CEO of American and its parent company, AMR Corp. Crandall
currently serves on a number of corporate boards and consults with
a variety of smaller companies. President Bush recently announced
his intent to nominate Crandall to serve on the Amtrak Reform
Board. A native of Westerly (RI), Crandall holds a bachelor's
degree from the University of Rhode Island and a master's degree in
business administration from the University of Pennsylvania's
Wharton School.
Before working for Zuckert, Scoutt and Rasenberger, from which
he is now retired, Schoellhamer was vice president
of planning and development for Lockheed Martin, IMS, from 1995 to
1997. He was chief of staff for the U.S. House of Representatives
Committee on Public Works and Transportation from 1993 to 1995. He
has also served as vice president of government affairs for two
airlines. In 1981, he joined the professional staff of the House
transportation panel's aviation subcommittee. He received his
bachelor's degree from the University of California at Santa Cruz
in 1970.
Before he began his work in 1992 with the Newport
News/Williamsburg Airport and the Peninsula Airport Commission,
Smith was director of the FAA's office for airport
capacity and a presidential appointee to the Civil Aeronautics
Board. He has previously served in airport management positions in
Sarasota (FL), Portland (OR), Columbia (SC), and Norfolk (VA).
Smith earned a bachelor's degree from Auburn University and a
master's degree from the University of South Carolina.