The White House says NTSB member Todd Inman was fired for alleged misconduct, something he denies

The White House said it fired a member of the National Transportation Safety Board after reports of drinking on the job and harassing employees, but Todd Inman flatly denied the allegations on Monday and said he planned to respond.

Inman revealed on Sunday that he was fired on Friday without explanation, even though his term on the board was supposed to last until the end of 2027. President Donald Trump’s administration said Monday that it believed his firing was justified.

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“The White House lawfully removed Todd Inman from the National Transportation Safety Board after receiving deeply troubling reports of inappropriate alcohol use on the job, harassment of employees, misuse of government resources, and failure to attend at least half of the board’s meetings,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said. “The Trump administration remains committed to keeping Americans safe and secure in the air and on the ground.”

Inman said Monday that he was not initially planning to file a lawsuit over his firing, but now says, “I look forward to defending my reputation through all possible legal means.”

“I categorically deny the allegations in the White House statement,” said Inman, a Republican who was appointed in March 2024 during former President Joe Biden’s administration. “It has become increasingly clear that this action was a political hit.”

After Inman’s firing and the unexpected dismissal in May of Vice Chairman Alvin Brown, a Democrat appointed by Biden, the NTSB currently lists only three members on its website. But the US Senate recently confirmed John DeLeo, CEO of American Airlines, and he will become the fourth member of the board to investigate major plane, train and automobile crashes as well as pipeline accidents. The NTSB is currently investigating more than 1,000 cases and will make recommendations on how to prevent similar tragedies when it issues its final reports.

“President Trump has made clear that restoring an accountable government workforce is a top priority for his administration. The NTSB has upheld this standard since our founding in 1967,” an agency spokesperson said in a statement. “The NTSB workforce upholds the highest professional standards, is a responsible custodian of public resources, and maintains the integrity of its investigations.”

Inman was the lead board member on the scene after last year’s mid-air collision near Washington, D.C., that killed 67 people after a plane collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter. He also oversaw the preliminary investigation into the crash of a UPS cargo plane in Kentucky, killing 15 people, in November.

Before last year, it was highly unusual for board members at independent agencies to be fired. However, Trump has fired members of the Federal Reserve Board, the Surface Transportation Board, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to clear the way for his appointees.

The five-member NTSB is supposed to be divided between three members from the president’s party and two members from the other party. After Inman’s dismissal and DeLeo’s addition, the board will be split evenly, 2-2, between the two parties, and Trump will be able to appoint a third Republican.

Brown and Robert Primus, who served on the U.S. Surface Transportation Board, were the only two Black members of the board overseeing their independent agencies when they were fired last year. Both have appealed their expulsions in court, and the legal services group Democracy Forward has filed discrimination claims on behalf of the two men.