Garvey Tapped For Transition Team; Woerth Could Be Next FAA Chief

Some interesting names with close ties to the aviation industry are being tossed around as possibilities for high-level positions in the Obama presidential administration.

At the top of the list is former FAA Administrator Jane Garvey (right), who oversaw the agency through the crisis of 9/11. Garvey resigned from the board of directors at Bombardier on Monday, and was named to Obama's transition team. Aides tell The Wall Street Journal she is a top contender to be the next Secretary of Transportation, replacing current DOT chief Mary Peters.

Another name likely to raise eyebrows is Duane Woerth, who is rumored to be a strong candidate for the position of FAA Administrator. While he makes his living today as an industry consultant, from 1999 to 2006 Woerth was president of the Air Line Pilots Association and a pilot at Northwest Airlines.

Woerth was voted out from his ALPA position in October 2006... and his familiarity with contentious labor negotiations could be a boon for air traffic controllers, who have battled against the current FAA regime over contract issues for several years. He reportedly has the tentative backing of House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-MN,) and is slated to meet with Senate Aviation Subcommittee chairman Jay Rockefeller before Thanksgiving.

Conversely, a potential roadblock in Woerth's path to the top job at the FAA could come from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid... who reportedly wants aide Robert Herbert to win the job.

Still, there's little doubt the National Air Traffic Controllers Association is watching current developments with a hopeful eye. In addition to Woerth's experience with (and assumed sympathy for) many of the same issues controllers are now fighting for, the union also fondly recalls the contract it won in 1998... when Garvey was the new FAA administrator.

Furthermore, in 2006 then-Senator Obama sponsored legislation to strip the FAA of its ability to impose labor rules. As ANN reported, that measure failed and the FAA declared an impasse, forcing a new contract on controllers... but NATCA hasn't forgotten who its friends were.

"We are seeing a lot of controllers saying, 'You know what, I'm going to wait this out and see what happens next year,'" said NATCA spokesman Doug Church. "[Obama] was a candidate that had been friendly to them."

In related news, Debbie Hersman -- a member of the National Transportation Safety Board who rose to prominence as spokesperson during a number of high-profile aviation accident investigations, including the August 2006 takeoff crash of Comair Flight 191 in Lexington, KY -- is reportedly among the candidates to replace Mark Rosenker as NTSB chairperson.

FMI: www.faa.gov, www.natca.org, www.ntsb.gov