Response To Reagan National Mid-Air, Some Say It’s Not Enough

Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) is chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and has been a reliably staunch supporter of the aviation industry. In response to the January mid-air collision near Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) that killed 67 people, he has introduced legislation intended to prevent such accidents in the future.

Among other things, Sen. Cruz’s bill expands the mandate requiring the use of ADS-B Out to include military and law enforcement training and safety evaluation operations in congested airspace and limits the exemptions permitted for “sensitive government missions” that enable them to fly without ADS-B being active.

The bill directs the FAA to require all new aircraft be equipped with ADS-B In to provide pilots information about other aircraft operating nearby as well as real-time weather info.

So far, the Department of Transportation and the FAA are backing the bill, albeit indicating the need to take a closer look at the details. Jennifer Homendy, chairwoman of the NTSB, has also voiced support for the legislation ahead of that agency’s three days of hearings regarding the Reagan National tragedy. She said the measure “will save lives.”

Sen. Cruz said, “We should not tolerate special exceptions for military training flights operating in congested airspace. No matter the circumstances, any aircraft operating near commercial traffic must fully adhere to safety standards. We cannot have commercial airplanes and helicopters on a collision course ever again.”

The legislation has yet to receive any outright endorsement from Democrats, and Cruz’s counterpart Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Ranking Member of the committee, introduced her own bill in June along with a group of Senate Democrats.

Sen. Cantwell said, however, she is “committed to working with Chairman Cruz to ensure we get this right and honor the memory of those we lost.”

One of the concerns voiced by Democrats is the timeline for implementation of Cruz’s plan, which currently stands at two years for regulations and three years for airlines to install tracking technology. Sen. Cantwell’s bill has tighter deadlines.

There are also provisions in the Cruz bill to require military leaders to audit their training and qualification standards to better work with air traffic controllers.

Sean P. Duffy, Secretary of Transportation, said the bill is the “right approach” but that his department will likely take a close look and tweak some of the details.

FMI:  www.commerce.senate.gov/