US senators announce deal on aviation safety legislation

Two U.S. senators announced a deal on Thursday on aviation safety legislation after a fatal January collision involving an American Airlines regional jet and an Army helicopter that killed 67 people spurred calls for reform.

Senate Commerce Committee chair Ted Cruz, a Republican, and the panel's top Democrat, Maria Cantwell, unveiled a bipartisan agreement on legislation requiring aircraft operators to equip their fleets with an advanced aircraft-tracking technology known as ADS-B by the end of 2031 and other significant safety reforms, including boosting oversight of mixed jet and helicopter traffic and flight routes near commercial service airports.

The agreement first reported by Reuters clears the way for a bipartisan vote by the committee Tuesday. It is unclear when the U.S. House of Representatives may take up the bill dubbed the ROTOR Act.

Cruz cited the families of the victims of the Jan. 29 collision, which praised the agreement.

"We owe it to them and every traveling American to make sure another accident never happens again," Cruz said, calling the provisions "common-sense safety improvements that are long overdue."

The bill would require the use of ADS-B by military helicopters near civilian planes and the use of ADS-B for all civilian aircraft. The helicopter involved in the accident was not using ADS-B at the time of the January collision near Reagan Washington National Airport.

ADS-B, or automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast, is an advanced surveillance technology that transmits an aircraft's location.

Cantwell said the language ensures the ADS-B requirements "are truly implemented after 17 years of delay with no FAA loopholes."

She added the bill on passage eliminates exemptions from ADS-B use by military helicopters for training flights, proficiency flights, and flights of federal officials below cabinet rank.

Lawmakers from both parties and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy have questioned why the Federal Aviation Administration failed to act for years to address close calls involving military helicopters near Reagan.

The bill would require comprehensive nationwide airport safety reviews at Reagan and other major airports to evaluate risks from military aircraft, helicopters, drones and flying air taxis to commercial flights.

Lawmakers from both parties and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy have questioned why the FAA failed to act for years to address close calls involving military helicopters near Reagan.

The bill also require the Army Inspector General's Office to initiate a safety coordination audit after it declined to do so and requires binding memorandums between the FAA and all military services to share aviation safety information from military mishap reporting systems.

The FAA in April said it would require ADS-B use near Reagan National by government helicopters, and in May it barred the Army from helicopter flights around the Pentagon after a close call.