We are pleased to announce our
February 8th Luncheon Featuring
Aviation in the New US Administration; Emerging Issues Panel Discussion
***REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED***
Panelists:
Tom Engle
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Affairs
U.S. Department of State
Brian Hedberg
Director, Office of International Aviation
U.S. Department of Transportation
Bailey Edwards
Policy Director for Aviation, Science and Space
U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation
Naveen Rao
Counsel, Aviation Subcommittee
House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
Moderator: Karen Walker
Editor-in-Chief, Air Transport World
The IAC's January luncheon will be Wednesday, February 8th, at the Mayflower Hotel
Bailey Edwards
Bailey Edwards serves U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member John Thune (R-SD) as Policy Director for Aviation, Science, and Space.
In that role, Mr. Edwards advises the Ranking Member on the activities of the
Committee's Aviation Subcommittee and the Science and Space Subcommittee. Mr. Edwards leads a small team of staff coordinating hearings, legislation, and oversight activities.
He previously served then-Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) as Senior Professional Staff when she was Ranking Member of the Commerce Committee, and he managed the aviation policy portfolio. Prior to his service in the Senate, Mr. Edwards served on the staff of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
He first served as Professional Staff on the Highways Subcommittee under Chairman Don Young (R-AK), contributing to the successful 2005 SAFETEA-LU Highway reauthorization effort, and later on the Aviation Subcommittee under Ranking Member turned Chairman John Mica (R-FL), contributing to the successful 2012 FAA Reauthorization effort, among other items.
Brian Hedberg
Brian J. Hedberg serves as the Director of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of International Aviation. In this position he is responsible for bilateral civil aviation relations and negotiations with countries around the world, though he has spent most of his career working with aviation partners in the Western Hemisphere, Middle East and the former Soviet republics.
He works closely with the Departments of State, Commerce and Homeland Security to resolve issues that arise for U.S. and foreign air carriers conducting international air transportation, and contributes to the success of the Department’s international aviation initiatives.
Prior to joining the Office of International Aviation, he practiced immigration law in
Chicago with the Madrid Crost Law Group and worked with several legal assistance
foundations. Mr. Hedberg received a Juris Doctor and a Certificate of International and Comparative Law from DePaul University and completed undergraduate education at Tulane University’s Stone Center for Latin American Studies and Complutensis University of Madrid.
Naveen Rao
Counsel, Aviation Subcommittee, House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
As Counsel, Rao advises the Aviation Subcommittee on the full range of legal and policy issues facing the Subcommittee, including a reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration’s
(FAA) programs. This is Rao’s first tour on Capitol Hill. He began his professional career in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Honors Attorney Program. Rao also worked in the FAA’s Office of the Chief Counsel and for the Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Aviation and International Affairs. From 2003-2005, he was a Mike Mansfield Fellow, when he was seconded to aviation regulatory agencies in Japan.
Rao’s private sector experience includes serving as general counsel of an aviation technology company, private law practice at Jones Day and, most recently, Squire Patton Boggs LLP.
Tom Engle
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Affairs,U.S. Department of State
Tom Engle has served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Affairs since July 2014. A career Senior Foreign Service officer, he also served in this area in 2005-07 as lead U.S. negotiator on civil aviation agreements, and concluded bilateral liberalization accords with China, Mexico, Thailand, and other countries.
Prior to his current position, Mr. Engle was director of the Office of Monetary Affairs, responsible for sovereign debt issues, financial and macroeconomic policy issues, and efforts to combat international trade-related bribery. In that capacity he was the lead U.S. representative to the Paris Club of creditor nations.
Mr. Engle joined the U.S. Foreign Service in 1986. He has held overseas assignments, mainly with economic responsibilities, in Beijing, Tokyo, Islamabad, Singapore, Berlin, and Kabul, serving as economic counselor at the U.S. Embassies in Germany and Afghanistan. In Singapore he was seconded to the Secretariat of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) organization and traveled throughout the region on APEC business. Mr. Engle’s Washington assignments have mainly focused on international finance and transportation policy issues. He has also served as an assessor in the State Department’s Board of Examiners, the office responsible for evaluating new applicants to join the Foreign Service.
Before joining the State Department, Mr. Engle worked in Washington for the U.S.-China Business Council and as a radio journalist for the Voice of America. He holds an M.A. in international relations from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and a B.A. in sociology from Davidson College in North Carolina.
Notes:
Reception begins at 12:00 PM. All guests are to be seated by 12:30 PM. Space is limited. Advance registrations are strongly encouraged. Please let us know if you have special dietary needs (e.g. vegetarian meal)
Guest names for name tags, recommendations to the Club for government invitees, and other questions should be sent to:
Jodie Moxley
2017 President
International Aviation Club
jodie.moxley@airbus.com