US: Former Air Force pilot to head FAA

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) announced that he will nominate former Air Force pilot Stephen M. Dickson as the next head of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

"Stephen M. Dickson of Georgia, to be the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration for a term of five years and to be the Chairman of the Air Traffic Services Committee (PA), Department of Transportation," read the White House statement.

The decision came hours after the US Transport Department has directed its internal watchdog to conduct an inquiry into the FAA approval of the Boeing 737 MAX 8.

Dickson recently retired from service as the senior vice president- flight operations for Delta Air Lines.

"Captain Dickson is a strong advocate for commercial aviation safety and improvements to our National Airspace System, having served as chairman of several industry stakeholder groups and Federal advisory committees," stated the White House.

Recently, FAA found itself mired in controversy over its certification and approval of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 jet, which has been involved in two major crashes in the last five months. The aircraft has been grounded by scores of governments and airlines citing safety concerns following the recent Ethiopian Airlines crash which claimed the lives of all 157 people on board.