By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Two U.S. senators are set to announce 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, sources told Reuters.
Senate Commerce Committee chair Ted Cruz, a Republican, and the panel’s top Democrat, Maria Cantwell, are nearing 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 safety reforms.
The agreement would clear the way for a bipartisan vote by the committee next week. It is unclear when the U.S. House of Representatives may take up the bill.
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.
It would eliminate exemptions from ADS-B use by military helicopters for training flights, proficiency flights, and flights of federal officials below cabinet rank.
The bill is also expected to require comprehensive nationwide airport safety reviews, not just at Reagan, and to evaluate risks from military aircraft, helicopters, drones, emergency first responders, and powered lift operations to commercial flights.
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 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.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Nick Zieminski)
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