President Donald Trump is pushing for his personal pilot to head the Federal Aviation Administration, but if John Dunkin gets the job, “it won’t be because he’s the president’s pilot,” a source told Axios.
“John Dunkin isn’t just a pilot," another administration official told Axios. "He’s managed airline and corporate flight departments, certified airlines from start-up under FAA regulations, and oversaw the Trump presidential campaign’s air fleet, which included managing all aviation transportation for travel to 203 cities in 43 states over the course of 21 months.”
Dunkin, according to CNN, has been interviewed for the post, with one source calling him “impressive.” Other candidates for the job include current acting FAA Administrator Dan Elwell and Missouri Rep. Sam Graves.
Trump has reportedly stressed to a number of administration officials that he wants Dunkin to lead the FAA.
Dunkin, according to a Smithsonian Channel documentary, has served as Trump’s personal pilot since 1989. Trump has praised him as “somebody with great integrity” and said in the documentary that Dunkin oversaw the management and maintenance of all of his aircraft.
Trump in early February during a meeting with top airline executives said he thought the air traffic control system would work better if a pilot were to run the FAA.
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