Congress Passes Historic Aviation Safety Reforms

0:00On March 26, two House committees have unanimously approved major aviation safety reforms in response to the deadly mid-air collision last January. Between an American Airlines jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan-Washington National Airport, which claims 67 lives, the new legislation, known as the Alert Act, mandates collision prevention systems on most military aircraft by the end of 2031 while. Still requiring similar tech on civilian planes and helicopters. It tackles issues in the Federal Aviation Administration's safety practices, boosts air traffic control training, and tightens rules around that busy airport. The National Transportation Safety Board praised the move as historic, noting it's the first time congressional committees have fully adopted all. Fifty of their recommendations after a major crash. The bill also pushes for widespread use of tracking systems like ADSB and calls for a review of flight volumes at Reagan-Nationals packed runway.

1:01This comes after a related bill stalled in the House last month, falling just short of the needed votes, despite strong Senate backing and support from. Crash victims' families. That earlier effort had aimed to speed up some changes, but hit a snag without Pentagon help. Lawmakers now hope the Alert Act clears the full house soon, paving the way for talks with the Senate to finalize a stronger safety net for the skies.