WASHINGTON The top Republican on the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee on Tuesday urged President Joe Biden to pick a new nominee to head the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), saying the delay puts passengers at risk.

The FAA has been without a permanent administrator since April 2022, and Biden's nominee withdrew in March in the face of Republican opposition.

"The FAA needs a Senate-confirmed administrator with substantial aviation experience," Senator Ted Cruz said in a letter to Biden seen by Reuters. "Every day that passes without a FAA administrator puts the flying public at risk."

(Reporting by David Shepardson; editing by Jonathan Oatis)