FAA Veteran Named CAP Safety Chief

Michael Nunemaker is Civil Air Patrol’s new chief of safety, Maj. Gen. Mark Smith, CAP national commander and CEO, has announced.

Nunemaker will be responsible for integration of risk management in all CAP mission areas and support functions. Essential duties include the execution of a targeted, proactive Safety Program centered on a solid Safety Management System framework.

“We are very excited to have Michael Nunemaker on the CAP team,” Smith said. “His boots-on-the ground experience with the Federal Aviation Administration will serve us well and help us to continue to be a leader in general aviation safety in our communities, states and nation.”

Nunemaker began work with CAP on Feb. 16 and will lead a team of both paid and volunteer staff members. He succeeds George Vogt, who retired in January.

Nunemaker brings nearly 15 years of safety experience to the position. From 2006-2013, he worked with the FAA as an aviation safety inspector, principal operations inspector and operations specialist. He most recently worked with the FAA as a supervisory program manager in Lancaster, Kentucky, leading the Flight Standards Leadership Development Branch.

Through his work with the FAA, Nunemaker brings to CAP a wealth of knowledge in safety analysis and evaluation. The Kentucky native is also a pilot and, early in his flying career, landed a role as a flight instructor at Falcon Field in Peachtree City, Georgia.

Nunemaker holds a bachelor’s degree in music from Clayton State University in Morrow, Georgia, and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Phoenix.

“I am honored to join the Civil Air Patrol team,” Nunemaker said. “This organization is so unique, with an 80-year history of safe flying. I look forward to building more partnerships and working to keep an emphasis on the safety of our people and operations, both in the air and on the ground.”