WASHINGTON, March 17 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump

is nominating Republic Airways CEO Bryan Bedford to head the

Federal Aviation Administration in the face of growing scrutiny

following a series of crashes.

Bedford, a pilot and industry veteran of more than 30

years, previously headed two other carriers and oversaw a

significant expansion of Republic Airways.

"Bryan brings over three decades of experience in

Aviation and Executive Leadership to this critical position,"

Trump said.

Indiana-based Republic is one of the biggest regional

airlines in North America, operating a fleet of more than 200

Embraer aircraft with 900 daily flights in the United States and

Canada. The flights operate under airline partner brands

American Eagle, Delta Connection and United

Express.

Bedford's nomination won praise from airlines.

The FAA position has been vacant since January 20, when

FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker stepped down a little more than

one year into a five-year term when Trump took office. The FAA

has been run on an interim basis by Deputy Administrator Chris

Rocheleau.

If confirmed, Bedford will face key decisions including

when to let

Boeing ( BA ) expand production of its 737 MAX

beyond the current 38 plane-per-month cap and when to

approve two new variants of the best-selling plane.

Rocheleau and Duffy visited Boeing ( BA ) in Seattle last week.

Duffy said Boeing ( BA )

had lost its way and lost the trust

of the American people.

On January 29, a mid-air collision between an American

Airlines ( AAL ) regional jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter near

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport killed 67 people.

Other recent incidents include fatal crashes of small

planes in Alaska and Philadelphia, the crash of a regional Delta

jet that flipped upon landing in Toronto and a near miss at

Chicago Midway involving a Southwest Airlines ( LUV ) jet.

On Friday, the FAA said it was imposing permanent

restrictions on non-essential helicopter operations at Reagan

National after urgent recommendations from the National

Transportation Safety Board.

Duffy said he will

ask Congress for tens of billions

of dollars to overhaul the nation's aging

air-traffic-control system.

The FAA is about 3,500 air traffic controllers short of

targeted staffing levels and in many places controllers are

working six days a week and mandatory overtime.