U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) announced a bipartisan agreement on the ROTOR Act they said will help advance it out of committee.
Cruz, chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, and Cantwell, the committee’s ranking member, said the text of the Rotorcraft Operations Transparency and Oversight Reform (ROTOR) Act now closes a loophole that allowed most military aircraft to operate without Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B) Out transmitting – technology that broadcasts an aircraft’s precise location. The bill also requires all aircraft to be equipped with ADS-B In, allowing pilots to better visualize and prevent incidents with vehicles and aircraft on the ground.
Officials said the bill will also strengthen the oversight of mixed air traffic and flight routes near commercial service airports and requires quarterly reports on ADS-B Out compliance, annual audits from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Inspector General and a safety review of potential airspace safety improvements around the Ronald Reagan Washington International Airport, also known as DCA.
The changes come nearly nine months after American Airlines Flight 5342 and a U.S. Army helicopter operating collided in mid-air over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., killing everyone aboard both aircraft.
“What happened at DCA on January 29th was a tragedy. Sixty-seven lives were lost, and their families have had to endure an unfathomable amount of grief. We owe it to them and every traveling American to make sure another accident never happens again,” Cruz said. “The ROTOR Act makes common-sense safety improvements that are long overdue.”
The legislation directs the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to updates its standards on safe distance between aircraft, as well as update controller training once ADS-B In is more widely adopted. The legislation also directs the FAA to provide an action plan on widespread adoption of the Airborne Collision Avoidance System-X (ACAS-X0 and to establish an FAA Office of FAA-DOD Coordination to streamline communication between the FAA and military departments.
“Bipartisan cooperation must ensure safety improvements are reached in aviation as quickly as possible. The agreed upon language delivers real aviation safety improvements by making sure that ADS-B In and Out requirements are truly implemented after 17 years of delay with no FAA loopholes,” Cantwell said. “This agreement closes DoD loopholes immediately and mandates ADS-B In for the first time, locking in a hard deadline so the FAA can’t continue delaying implementation.”