Robert Sumwalt, a member of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) since 2006, has been designated as vice chairman. Sumwalt succeeds Bella Dinh-Zarr, who will remain as a board member.
The designation as vice chairman was made by President Donald Trump last week at the same time Trump said he intended to nominate Sumwalt for another five-year term as a board member.
Sumwalt will serve as acting chairman of the NTSB — a post that has been vacant since Christopher Hart’s term as chairman expired in mid-March. Dinh-Zarr had served as acting chairman until the end of the month.
Before he joined the NTSB, Sumwalt spent 32 years as an airline pilot and accumulated more than 14,000 flight hours. He is a former member of Flight Safety Foundation’s Icarus Committee, made up of international aviation safety experts, and has authored numerous articles for Foundation publications.
Photo credit: NTSB
