"Airport Deputy Ascends to the Top Spot"

Thursday, April 3, 2003

Airport Deputy Ascends to the Top Spot 
James E. Bennett Will Oversee National, Dulles in Industry's Uneasy Times 
By Katherine Shaver
The Washington (DC) Post


James E. Bennett, second in command of the Metropolitan Washington Airports
Authority, was appointed yesterday as president and chief executive officer,
the top position overseeing finances and building at Reagan National and
Dulles International airports. 

Bennett will replace James A. Wilding, 65, to become the authority's second
leader since the federal government relinquished control of the two airports
in 1987. Bennett will assume the new position May 2, upon Wilding's
retirement, the authority's board of directors announced. 

Bennett, 48, the authority's chief operating officer since 1996, will take
over at one of the most uncertain times in aviation history. 

The airline industry is in financial turmoil as the economic slump, the war
in Iraq and terrorism concerns have prompted cutbacks. Like airports across
the country, National and Dulles have undergone vast changes in security
procedures since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, and Dulles is amid a $2.6
billion building program. National's largest carrier, US Airways, emerged
from bankruptcy Monday, and Dulles's largest carrier, United Airlines, filed
for bankruptcy protection last year.

"It's a very difficult time for the entire aviation industry, both for
airlines and airports," Bennett said. "There are certainly a lot of
challenges out there in the near term, and it's going to be difficult. All
airports are going to have some very tough decisions over the coming
months."

Bennett oversees daily operations at Dulles and National, including public
safety and personnel for 1,200 employees. In his new position, he will have
more responsibility for finances, planning and engineering, he said. Just as
important, airport observers said, he will serve as the airports' public
face to Wall Street, airlines, Capitol Hill, local governments and the
region's business community. 

In appointing Bennett, the board of directors forewent a national search.
Norman "Chip" M. Glasgow Jr., the board's chairman, said the board had
"input from search firms" that confirmed Bennett's "highly respected"
reputation.

"He was hired [in 1996] with the thought that he could be a person who would
grow into that role," Glasgow said.

Bennett, of Vienna, has spent his entire career in airport management,
working in such cities as Phoenix, Shreveport, La., and Flint, Mich.

Leo J. Schefer, president of the Washington Airports Task Force, a
pro-airport lobbying group, praised the quick choice of someone who would
provide stability and continuity.

"Jim Bennett knows our airports, he knows the system," Schefer said. "He's
the best professional in the airport business that you're going to find. . .
. Air transportation is in the most delicate state it's been in living
memory, and now is not the time to leave our airports leaderless."

Attached Photo:

James A. Wilding, president of the Metropolitan Washington Airports
Authority, will retire May 2, to be succeeded by his second-in-command.

I16158-2003Apr03L.jpg