Airspace Location and Enhanced Risk Transparency Act of 2026
Floor Speech
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Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 7613, the Airspace Location and Enhanced Risk Transparency Act, or the ALERT Act, as amended, bipartisan legislation introduced by T&I Committee Chair Sam Graves, House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers, Ranking Member Adam Smith of the Armed Services Committee, and myself, as the ranking member of the T&I Committee.
This bill responds to all the probable causes of the tragic midair collision near Washington National Airport, DCA, on January 29, 2025.
On that evening, American Airlines Flight 5342 arriving to DCA from Wichita, Kansas, and an Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter flying a routine training mission collided above the Potomac River, resulting in 67 tragic deaths, representing the deadliest U.S. aviation accident since 2001.
To the families and loved ones of those lost in this tragedy: You certainly have my deepest condolences. What you have gone through is unimaginable, and you have my sincere gratitude for your advocacy. Your tireless efforts to effect real change and improve aviation safety have made this bill better.
I also thank the chair of the NTSB, Chair Jennifer Homendy, her investigators, and the staff for their diligent work to uncover the cause and contributing factors of this accident, as well as their valuable input as our committee developed and refined this legislation.
After the accident, the NTSB was on the scene and initiated its thorough investigation into determining the probable cause, identifying factors and findings, and issuing recommendations to the appropriate Federal agencies.
The NTSB published its final report in February that contained the probable cause of the collision, its findings, and 50 new safety recommendations directed to the Department of Transportation and the Department of Defense. Today, we are considering legislation that responds to all the NTSB's safety recommendations.
The ALERT Act has been bipartisan from its inception and is the result of productive, good-faith collaboration between the T&I and Armed Services Committees and the impacted agencies. Since the D.C. midair tragedy involved both the FAA and the DOD, the solution has to involve both committees to make lasting changes.
This bill we are considering today--as I like to call it, the ALERT Act version 7.0--looks vastly different from the legislation introduced in February, version 1.0.
It incorporates feedback from the families of the victims, the NTSB, and other stakeholders who have helped make the ALERT Act a truly comprehensive safety bill that works to address all 50 NTSB safety recommendations.
The legislation contains a sense of Congress and 23 provisions requiring the FAA and the DOT to act on safety recommendations issued in the NTSB's final report.
These provisions require ADS-B In and collision prevention technology on virtually all aircraft, enhance air traffic control training and traffic management procedures, modernize ATC facilities and technology, address deficiencies in DOT and FAA's safety culture, and strengthen the safety of the national airspace system and safety in the airspace around DCA.
A key provision of the ALERT Act is its equipage requirement for collision prevention technologies, including what we call ADS-B In.
The important thing to know about ADS-B In is it is only one part of a collision prevention equation in the ALERT Act. While useful, ADS-B In must be paired with the right system in the cockpit--the right displays, the right audible alarms, the right software--to effectively increase a pilot's situational awareness.
As a result, the ALERT Act not only requires ADS-B In but also requires each aircraft to have collision prevention technology. For all mainline air carriers, this ADS-B In enabled ACAS Xa is what we call the next-generation collision avoidance system.
For everyone else who is currently required to have ADS-B Out, they will be required to have any of the ADS-B In-enabled collision prevention technologies that also meet a strict set of minimum requirements.
These ADS-B In capabilities, fed into the right collision prevention technologies, provide pilots with an unprecedented level of situational awareness and will increase the safety of the airspace across the country.
The time to act is now. House passage of the ALERT Act is the next step in delivering on Congress' safety commitment to the flying public and addressing all 50 NTSB recommendations.
Moreover, passage of the ALERT Act in the House will allow us to begin critical discussions with the Senate on a final legislative response to the DCA midair tragedy.
I urge all my colleagues to support the ALERT Act, as amended. I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Carson).
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Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Oregon (Ms. Hoyle).
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Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Beyer).
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Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Subramanyam).
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Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Madam Speaker, we must do everything that we can to prevent another midair collision and to improve aviation safety. That is why I support H.R. 7613, as amended, and urge my colleagues to do the same.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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