1. United States
2. Wisc.
3. Letter

It’s time to listen to actual experts. Trump and Congress have dismissed the experts. When it comes to airplanes please listen to Capt . Sullenberger! Hero pilot Captain Sully Sullenberger of "Miracle on the Hudson" fame slams Donald Trump's disastrous pick to lead the Federal Aviation Agency, stating that his "life's work could be undone" and "we all deserve better." “Aviation Safety has been my life's work," he wrote on his Instagram and LinkedIn accounts. "After my emergency landing in the Hudson River and the Colgan Air crash the following month, I knew that I had an obligation to make it my mission to keep safe everyone who flies." "But with the nomination of Bryan Bedford to be FAA Administrator, my life's work could be undone," he continued. "Mr. Bedford has already shown that he is willing to lie about his qualifications as a pilot, and he is not willing to uphold the critically important pilot experience requirements put in place in 2010 that have been so effective in ensuring the safety of the traveling public." Sullenberger is an American hero who in 2009 managed to make an emergency landing in the Hudson River after the plane he was piloting struck a flock of birds. All 155 people on board survived. "Let me be crystal clear: Mr. Bedford will not commit to the current 1500-hour pilot experience rule, which means that airline pilots would have far less experience, and would not be seasoned, literally, not having experienced flying in all the seasons of the year, the crosswinds of spring, the thunderstorms of summer, the frost and fog of fall and the ice and snow of winter," wrote Sullenberger. "The first time a pilot experiences real weather should not be with paying passengers onboard, unwitting and unwilling guinea pigs." "And Bedford has indicated that he would reduce regulations and let the airlines regulate themselves more. That's insane. Manufacturers also?" he added. Sullenberger wrote that Bedford's FAA nomination "puts the integrity of our aviation safety system at extreme risk." While Sullenberger wrote his criticisms last month during the confirmation process, they have gone viral in recent days amidst growing concern that flying is becoming increasingly dangerous under Trump's FAA. Bedford was confirmed as FAA administrator despite the objections of Democrats and Captain Sully. As usual, the only qualification for powerful positions inside the Trump administration is unquestioning loyalty to Trump himself. Competency matters for nothing to this president. All he cares about is obedience.