WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) today released a statement remembering legendary pilot Robert A. “Bob” Hoover

“I am saddened by the passing of Bob Hoover and my thoughts and prayers are with his family. Bob was one of the best pilots in history and has been a stalwart in the aviation community for decades. Not only did Bob honorably serve our nation as a U.S. Air Force test pilot during World War II, but he worked tirelessly on behalf of pilots everywhere. After the FAA famously revoked his medical certificate without cause Bob became the driving force and inspiration behind my longstanding efforts to pass legislation that addressed the FAA’s bureaucratic red tape. I continued this work with the two Pilot’s Bill of Rights bills that made due process reforms to the FAA’s enforcement process and redesigned the FAA’s entire medical certification process for general aviation pilots. These accomplishments would not have been possible without Bob and I thank him for being a champion for pilots everywhere and for his contribution to the aviation community. They will surely never be forgotten.”  

In 1999, Sen. Inhofe introduced S. 722, which gave FAA certificate holders the ability to immediately appeal emergency revocations to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). This legislation was made law as a part of the FAA Reauthorization passed in 2000 and was initiated after FAA arbitrarily revoked Bob Hoover’s medical certificate.

In 2011, Sen. Inhofe  introduced S. 1335, the Pilot’s Bill of Rights. This bill makes FAA enforcement proceedings and NTSB reviews fair for pilots by providing them with the information they need to appropriately defend themselves. It was signed into law on August 3, 2012.

In 2015, Sen. Inhofe introduced S. 571, the Pilot’s Bill of Rights 2. Among other things, this bill reformed the medical certification process for general aviation pilots and made the skies safer by reforming the previous process that incentivized pilots to hide emerging medical conditions from the FAA. The medical certification reforms were signed into law in July 2016.