FAA chief Randy Babbitt to resign after drunken driving arrest

(CBS/AP) WASHINGTON - The head of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration says he will resign after his arrest over the weekend on charges of drunken driving.

Randy Babbitt said in a statement Tuesday that he did not want to allow anything to "cast a shadow" on the work done by his colleagues at the agency.

The 65-year-old Babbitt was arrested Saturday night in suburban Fairfax City, Virginia, by a patrolman who said the FAA administrator was driving on the wrong side of the road.

Babbitt had been placed on a leave of absence Monday.

The Federal Aviation Administration is part of the Transportation Department. Babbitt is about halfway through a five-year term.

Babbitt, 65, was charged with driving while intoxicated after a patrol officer spotted him driving on the wrong side of the road and pulled him over around 10:30 p.m. Saturday in Fairfax City, Va., police in the Washington suburb said.

Babbitt, who lives in nearby Reston, Va., was the only occupant in the vehicle, police said. He cooperated and was released on his own recognizance.

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