When police in Fairfax, Virginia, saw a car driving down the wrong side of Old Lee Highway Saturday night, they did just what you'd expect -- pulled the car over and confronted the driver, who turned out to be J. Randolph Babbitt, 65, of Reston, Va., the administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration.The Department of Transportation says Babbitt's employment is being reviewed, and that his is on leave while the situation is reviewed. In a statement, DOT said:
"DOT officials learned of FAA Administrator Babbitt's arrest on Saturday night within the last hour. Administrator Babbitt has requested, effective immediately, to take a leave of absence from the FAA. That request has been granted and Deputy Administrator Michael Huerta will serve as acting administrator. DOT officials are in discussions with legal counsel about Administrator Babbitt's employment status."
Babbitt was a pilot for Eastern Airlines for 25 years and had served of the Air Line Pilots Association. As head of ALPA in the late 1990s, he championed the "one level of safety" initiative implemented in 1995 to improve safety standards across the airline industry.
President Obama nominated him in 2009 to head the FAA. He has been struggling to implement a wide range of safety initiatives, often over the opposition of industry officials who say the measures would cost too much money.
Steve Green (Mon, 05 Dec 2011 22:25:38 +0000): Roger, over and out!
George Kennedy (Tue, 06 Dec 2011 16:18:20 +0000): At last a leader in the goverment==but as usual going the wrong way.