The flight attendants moved a Black woman from first class to the last row—then fell silent as she opened her wallet and said, “I am Dr. Simone Carter, FAA administrator.” But her title wasn’t what terrified the airline CEO most. It was the interview file she’d been called in to about thirty seconds earlier.

Seven weeks earlier, the president had confirmed her as a Federal Aviation Administration administrator after nearly 28 years in the fields of aerospace engineering, accident prevention, certification oversight and commercial aviation regulation.

She was the first black woman to hold that position.

The newspapers had focused on this story.

Simone preferred to talk about engines.

She had earned her doctorate in mechanical and aerospace systems from Georgia Tech, started her career inspecting regional carriers, then headed a national aircraft certification division, and spent years developing predictive maintenance standards that most passengers would never know existed.

His mother taught chemistry at a public high school for thirty-four years.

His father, Leon Carter, repaired airplanes in the Air Force before becoming one of the first Black maintenance supervisors at a major southern airport.

He taught Simone something when she was twelve years old that stayed with her for the rest of her life.