Thomas L. Carter is a former commercial pilot and retired major general in the Air Force Reserve Command who currently serves as the Representative of the United States on the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization. He had a 34-year career with the U.S. Air Force, retiring in 2009. Carter was a US Airways pilot for 12 years. He previously served as vice president for government relations at Elbit Systems and president of Commonwealth Consulting Corporation. He was senior counselor to the Coalition Provisional Authority for Legislative Affairs in Baghdad and served as assistant to the chairman for government affairs of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. Carter is a former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense and a former staffer for Senate Republican Leader Bob Dole.