House Set to Vote on Aircraft Safety Technology After Deadly DC Crash

The House will vote Tuesday on requiring aircraft safety technology that could have prevented last year's deadly midair collision near Washington D.C. that killed 67 people. The vote comes as families of victims push for immediate action while lawmakers debate competing approaches to aviation safety reforms.

Congressional representatives are preparing for a crucial Tuesday vote that could determine whether commercial airlines and other aircraft operating near major airports must install safety technology that officials say would have prevented the devastating midair crash near the nation’s capital that claimed 67 lives.

The legislation, which received unanimous approval in the Senate, would mandate that all aircraft carry both a system to transmit their position and another to receive location data from nearby planes. Currently, only the transmission equipment is mandatory.

Grieving relatives of those who perished when an American Airlines aircraft struck an Army Black Hawk helicopter are backing the proposal, which would enact a safety recommendation the NTSB has championed since 2008. Major unions representing pilots, cabin crew, and aviation industry workers have also thrown their weight behind the legislation, dubbed the ROTOR act. However, leadership from two influential House committees recently developed competing legislation aimed at addressing all 50 safety recommendations from the NTSB, not solely the tracking technology.

The primary advocacy group Families of Flight 5342 stated that although the House version contains valuable reforms worthy of consideration, they cannot endorse it in its current form. All passengers and crew aboard both the helicopter and the American Airlines flight from Wichita, Kansas, perished in the collision, including the parents of Olympic figure skater Maxim Naumov and 26 additional members of the figure skating world, when both aircraft crashed into the frozen Potomac River.

“The measure of legislation is not how many items it addresses but how well it addresses the most critical ones. On the central question of how quickly and effectively aircraft will be required to carry collision mitigation technology, the two bills are materially different,” the families group said Friday.

The Airlines for American trade organization and major general aviation associations representing corporate jets and private aircraft operators — including the National Business Aviation Association and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association — have endorsed the House proposal. American Airlines, however, backs the Senate version.

The Defense Department withdrew its December endorsement of the ROTOR act on Monday, stating it would “create significant unresolved budgetary burdens and operational security risks affecting national defense activities.” House Transportation and Armed Services committee chairs also encouraged colleagues during floor discussion to oppose the measure, arguing it lacks comprehensiveness and House input.

The primary distinction between the proposals centers on the House version’s approach to proven Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast systems. Rather than mandating both types of equipment, the House bill would direct the Federal Aviation Administration to study optimal technology options through an extended regulatory process before implementing requirements. The House measure also addresses broader systemic problems the NTSB identified as crash contributors from the January 29 incident.

The bipartisan Senate coalition supporting the ROTOR act — spearheaded by Republican Senator Ted Cruz and Democrat Maria Cantwell — describes their proposal as an important initial step before crafting additional measures.

The ROTOR act requires more than two-thirds House support to advance Tuesday under the expedited procedure being utilized. The House alternative isn’t prepared for floor consideration.

Rachel Feres, mourning her cousin, his spouse, and their two young children who died in the tragedy, emphasized both measures are necessary, but ROTOR should pass immediately to address critical collision prevention technology while legislators refine the broader proposal.

“The same risk that took our families’ lives is still there today. And so it is so vital that we address that as soon as possible,” Feres said.

Aircraft operating around major airports must already carry ADS-B Out equipment that continuously transmits location and velocity data. ADS-B In systems that receive these signals and create displays showing pilots surrounding air traffic aren’t standard on commercial aircraft, though many private pilots use portable receivers to view this information on tablets.

NTSB findings revealed this technology would have provided substantially more advance warning to the pilots in the collision and enabled them to prevent the crash. Aircraft with ADS-B In can give pilots precise information about other aircraft locations, while existing technology only alerts that traffic exists in the vicinity.

“The question is: How many more people need to die before we act?” NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy asked in a post on X not long before the House bill was released last week.

“We have an obligation to fix what went wrong on January 29th. Not only must we do this for the 67 people who died, we must do this for all those who lost their lives in accidents we’ve investigated. We must do this for their families. We must do this for future generations… lives we can still save.”