Fact check: Trump fired the head of the fAA

1. Summary of the results

The original statement is inaccurate in multiple ways. Steve Dickson, who was actually nominated by Trump in 2019, was not fired but voluntarily resigned in March 2022 ^{[1] [2]}. The current FAA Administrator, Mike Whitaker, is stepping down on January 20, 2025, also voluntarily rather than being fired ^[3].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

Several important contextual details are missing from the original statement:

• Dickson's resignation was amicable and praised by Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who called him the "FAA's steady and skilled captain" ^[2]
• Dickson was originally appointed by Trump in 2019 following two fatal Boeing 737 Max crashes, with a mandate to improve the FAA's safety culture ^[4]
• He resigned halfway through his five-year term, citing a desire to spend more time with his family after long separations while working in Washington D.C. ^{[2] [4]}
• While Trump did not fire the FAA head, he did fire David Pekoske, the head of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), who was in the middle of his second five-year term ^[5]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The statement appears to conflate different events and agencies:

• It may be confusing the FAA with the TSA, as Trump did fire the TSA head ^[5]
• The current timing of Whitaker's departure (January 2025) appears to be strategic, as it "clears the way for Trump to name his own choice to lead the agency" ^[3]
• The statement oversimplifies complex personnel changes in federal aviation leadership by presenting them as simple firings rather than acknowledging the various circumstances and motivations behind leadership transitions