The NTSB currently has three members on its five-member board after the abrupt removal of vice chair Alvin Brown last year, with Brown and Robert Primus—the U.S. Surface Transportation Board member—being the only Black executives fired from their agencies recently; both have challenged their firings in court amid discrimination claims filed by Democracy Forward on their behalf.

The White House has defended those removals as lawful, asserting that performance, not bias, drove the decisions.

Earlier, Brown and Primus, both Black officials from independent agencies, were dismissed last year, prompting discrimination lawsuits and court challenges, which the White House says were performance-based.

Inman described his service on the NTSB as a great honor and said witnessing accidents has shaped his perspective on safety regulation for travelers.

He noted two decades of involvement with major aviation incidents have deepened his appreciation for the NTSB’s mission and the impact of the work on public safety, while acknowledging personal and family consequences.

Inman was appointed by President Biden in 2024 to fill a Republican seat on the five-member board, with a term through the end of 2027.

He gained prominence for leading questions during the NTSB investigation into the January 29, 2025 midair collision near Reagan National Airport, where an Army Black helicopter struck an American Airlines jet, killing 67 people.

Prior to joining the NTSB, Inman served as chief of staff to Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and had been an NTSB board member since April 2024, witnessing the January 2025 collision firsthand.

Late February 2026, the Senate confirmed John DeLeeuw to fill Brown’s seat, signaling new leadership for the board.

The NTSB investigates aviation, rail, highway, and other transportation disasters to determine probable causes and issue safety recommendations, currently overseeing about 1,250 open cases.

Inman has been the public face of investigations into major aviation incidents, including the UPS cargo plane crash in Kentucky and the Reagan National collision, with the latter resulting in multiple fatalities.

As lead board member on these investigations, Inman has shaped the broader inquiry efforts spanning the past two decades.