Washington: An Indian American has been appointed to a key position in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Ravi Chaudhary has been made in charge of oversight and execution of aviation operations in nine different regions. A former Air Force officer, Mr Chaudhary in his capacity as Executive Director for Regions and Center Operations at the FAA is also responsible for executing a $288 million operating budget and leads over 2,100 Federal Employees in nine nationwide regions.
As second in command to the Deputy Assistant Administrator for ARC, he is also responsible for providing Department of Transportation and FAA-wide services in the areas of operations, safety, policy, corporate and congressional outreach, emergency readiness, facilities management, besides centralised support for the National Aerospace System, a media release said.
Earlier, Mr Chaudhary completed 21 years of service at the Air Force District of Washington, Andrews Air Force Base.
He is a C-17 Pilot and has completed a variety of command, operational, engineering, and senior staff assignments in the Air Force.
He has also served at the Pentagon as a Speechwriter and Strategic Planner in the Secretary of the Air Force Executive Action Group and Deputy Chief of Staff for Air Force Strategic Plans and Programs.
On May 6, 2014, Mr Chaudhary was appointed by US President Barack Obama as a member of the President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
In this role, he advises the President on executive branch efforts to improve economic and community development, public and private sector collaboration, health, education and veterans support for the AAPI community.
Mr Chaudhary holds a BS in Aeronautical Engineering from the Air Force Academy, MA in Operational Arts and Science from Air University, and an MS in Industrial Engineering from St Mary's University as a NASA graduate fellow.