Tower retired from the Senate in 1985 . After leaving Congress , he served as chief negotiator of the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks with the Soviet Union and led the Tower Commission . The commission 's report was highly critical of the Reagan administration 's relations with Iran and the Contras . In 1989 , incoming President George H. W. Bush chose Tower as his nominee for Secretary of Defense , but his nomination was rejected by the Senate . After the defeat , Tower chaired the President 's Intelligence Advisory Board . Tower died in the 1991 Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311 crash
Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311
Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311
John Tower