Thomas M. Kowalick is a globally recognized subject matter expert on Event Data Recorders (EDRs) and a leading voice in automotive safety advocacy. For more than two decades, he served as Chair of the IEEE 1616 Standards Working Group, where he championed the creation of the world's first universal standard for automotive "black boxes" despite coordinated opposition from the global auto industry.
Before his pioneering work in vehicle forensics, Kowalick served as Afloat Coordinator and Adjunct Assistant Professor aboard the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) from 1977 to 1982. During his 55-month deployment, he participated in highly classified operations, including Operation Eagle Claw, and was awarded the Navy Expeditionary Medal. From 1982 to 2010, he served as a Professor of History and Holocaust Studies at Sandhills Community College in North Carolina.
Driven by the unexplained mountain road crash that claimed his father's life in 1982 and a subsequent near-fatal collision involving his own children, Kowalick dedicated his life to ensuring the truth of every crash survives the wreck. He is the author of multiple books on transportation safety, including Fatal Exit: The Automotive Black Box Debate, and the architect of the model legislation known as the "Driver Freedom Act". He writes not just as an observer, but as a pioneer who was in the room when the decisions that shape modern auto safety were made. He resides in North Carolina.