Safety Operating Systems (SOS) and Aviation Safety Compliance (ASC) have announced a major expansion of their transportation-safety leadership: Michael E. Graham, former Vice Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, has joined the SOS and ASC team, effective October 3, 2026.
The appointment brings together three of the country’s most experienced transportation-safety leaders. Graham joins Captain John Cox, founder and chief executive officer of SOS, and Captain Jim Hosey, creating an exceptional concentration of operational, investigative, regulatory and executive-level expertise for organizations confronting complex, high-consequence risk.
“There are very few people in transportation safety with Michael Graham’s breadth of experience, judgment and credibility,” Cox said. “He has led safety from the cockpit, the corporate flight department and the boardroom of the nation’s premier accident-investigation agency. His decision to join SOS and ASC is an extraordinary addition to our team and a powerful endorsement of the work we do. Our team will offer clients a depth of practical safety leadership that is genuinely rare.”
“I have personally known Mike for many years, having served on the NBAA Safety Committee with him and worked as a consultant and safety auditor when he was at Textron, said Captain Jim Hosey, President and Co-founder of Aviation Safety Compliance, and I am delighted that Mike has chosen to join our team.”
Graham concluded his NTSB service on October 2 after serving on the five-member Board since January 2020. During his tenure, he advanced effective safety management systems, connected-vehicle technology and measures to reduce distracted driving. He also served as the Board Member on scene for major investigations across aviation, rail and marine transportation.
Before joining the NTSB, Graham spent more than two decades at Textron Aviation, ultimately serving as Director of Flight Operations Safety, Security and Standardization. His responsibilities included the company’s safety management system, emergency response program, air safety investigations and flight-operations standardization. He also established an Aviation Safety Action Program that became a model for Part 91 operators.
A former U.S. Navy aviator, Graham flew the A-7 and F/A-18, completed two operational deployments and served as an F/A-18 instructor, evaluator and model manager. He is an Airline Transport Pilot with more than 10,000 flight hours and holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of New Mexico.
“I chose to join John Cox, Jim Hosey and the SOS and ASC team because we share the same fundamental purpose: identify and manage risk before it becomes tragedy,” Graham said. “This team has the experience, independence and commitment to help leaders make better decisions when the stakes are highest. I look forward to building on that foundation and extending our ability to make transportation safer.”
Graham’s addition substantially expands the team’s capacity to advise corporate boards, senior executives, operators and other safety-critical organizations. He will support clients in safety management, operational risk, accident and incident investigation, emergency preparedness, executive decision-making and safety-culture improvement.
