WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday said it has tapped Billy Nolen to head the agency’s aviation safety organization.

Nolen has been the vice president for safety and security at WestJet Airlines. In Canada, he was also responsible for quality control. Nolen will be taking over as associate administrator for aviation safety for the FAA in early 2013. He leads a staff of 7,600 FAA workers. Nolen began his professional career in 1989 as a pilot for American Airlines (NASDAQ:) and later became the airline’s managing director for corporate safety and regulatory affairs.

After two deadly 737 MAX accidents that claimed 346 lives, the FAA has come under scrutiny for its safety and oversight of Boeing (NYSE :). In December 2020, Congress passed legislation that would reform the FAA’s certification process for new aircraft and delegate some of its duties to Boeing.