Washington, DC – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley applauded the decision by President Obama to nominate fellow Oregonian Dr. Earl Weener to the open Republican seat on the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Dr. Weener, a resident of Sherwood, Oregon, has dedicated his career to improving airplane and pilot safety and contributed greatly to the development of safety precautions of the commercial airline industry.
“I am pleased that President Obama has chosen to nominate Earl Weener to the National Transportation Safety Board,” said Merkley. “Weener will bring decades of expertise in the advancement of airliner safety and is a tremendous addition to the board. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in voting to confirm this extremely qualified nominee.”
Recently, Senator Merkley urged Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) to consider recommending Dr. Weener to be the nominee for the open Republican seat on the National Transportation Safety Board. Read the letter here.
Dr. Weener, formerly a chief engineer at Boeing, has a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering and is currently a fellow at the Flight Safety Foundation. Weener led industry initiatives to improve runway safety, reduce ground accidents and injuries, and is the recipient of a number of awards including the Honeywell Bendix Trophy for Aviation Safety.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent Federal agency that issues safety recommendations aimed at preventing future accidents and is in charge of investigating civil aviation, railroad, highway, marine and pipeline accidents in the United States.
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