FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 19, 2010
CONTACT: David Gillies, Rep. Costello’s office
COSTELLO WELCOMES DR. KARLIN TONNER AS HEAD OF JPDO
WASHINGTON – U.S. Congressman Jerry Costello (D-IL), Chairman of the House Aviation Subcommittee, issued the following statement today regarding the announcement by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that Dr. Karlin Tonner has been appointed Director of the Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO). JPDO is responsible for coordinating the development and implementation of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen).
“I welcome Dr. Tonner to this critical position and look forward to working with her. JPDO’s mission is as important as any currently before the aviation community, and I remain concerned that it is not structured in a way that gives the Director the level of authority and access needed to be effective. I will continue to evaluate this issue as we move ahead. Ensuring the necessary inter-agency cooperation that NextGen requires is a very complicated managerial task and we need to get it right. Secretary LaHood and Administrator Babbitt understand this, and I believe Dr. Tonner’s extensive experience at NASA will be very helpful.”