Mark Rosenker

Mark Victor Rosenker (December 8, 1946 – September 26, 2020) was an American aviation official who served as the 11th chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) from August 2006 through August 2008. He was nominated by President George W. Bush and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Chairman Rosenker was renominated by President Bush for a second term as chair and was going through the Senate confirmation process, which basically ended when President Obama was elected in November 2008. He served as acting chair starting in March 2005 to August 2006 and then again from August 2008 until his resignation from the board in August 2009, when he returned to private life. He died on September 26, 2020, from brain cancer at the age of 73.

Military service

Rosenker was a retired Air Force Reserve Major General. During his 37-year active duty and reserve career, Rosenker received numerous awards and decorations including the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal with One Oak Leaf Cluster and the Legion of Merit. Since retiring from the NTSB, he has appeared as a keynote speaker at numerous aviation and other transportation industry events. He has been a senior adviser to a number of industry sponsored coalitions advocating for safer roads.

Prior to his death, Rosenker was the president of the Transportation Safety Group LLC, a specialized consulting firm focused on transportation issues in the US and around the world.

He famously blamed the pilot and airlines safety standards in the Boeing 737 Max Lion Air crash and said “Certainly in the United States they understand how to operate this aircraft”.