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FAA chief to resign
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November 8, 1996: 8:58 a.m. ET
Departure continues administration shakeup, marks end of turbulent tenure
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Federal Aviation Administration chief David Hinson announced Thursday he will leave the post he has held for most of the first term of the Clinton administration.
Hinson's last day as FAA Administrator will be Saturday, when Deputy Administrator Linda Hall Daschle, wife of Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle will take over as Acting Administrator until Jan. 31.
A successor to Hinson, 63, has not been announced.
"I promised the president I would serve through his first term," he said in a statement, "and with his help, and that of Secretary Pena and Linda Daschle, we have made exceptional progress in giving the FAA a new focus and direction."
Hinson indicated several months ago that he did not plan to stay beyond the first term commitment.
Hinson's administration was a turbulent one, marked by several major airline crashes and open criticism of the FAA for its handling of ValuJet in the wake of the carrier's crash in Florida.
Both Hinson and Transportation Secretary Federico Pena had pronounced the airline safe to fly, but then shut ValuJet down after an intense investigation uncovered numerous problems.
Hinson leaves office with two major crashes unsolved. Investigators still have not been able to pinpoint the cause of the crash of USAir flight 427 near Pittsburgh in 1994 and the cause of the downing of TWA flight 800 is still a mystery.
On the positive side, Hinson oversaw the successful restructuring of the air traffic control modernization effort that was over budget and behind schedule when he took office.
He brought commuter airlines up to the same safety standards as large airlines, began expediting the use of a satellite navigation systems and presided over the creation of a streamlined acquisition and personnel system for the FAA. 
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