Pledge further action on other NTSB recommendations

WASHINGTON, DC -- Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), leaders of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, released a joint statement after House leadership scheduled the Senate-passed ROTOR Act for floor action next week.

Sens. Cruz and Cantwell statement:

“We are encouraged that House lawmakers are ready to vote to enact the NTSB's post-DCA crash safety recommendations, including the ROTOR Act. We look forward to the House honoring the 67 lives lost in this preventable tragedy by approving the bipartisan ROTOR Act next week, which the Senate unanimously passed in December, and sending the bill to President Trump's desk. The ROTOR Act decisively closes the loopholes that caused the accident and has broad support from the Families of Flight 5342, aviation safety advocates, aviation businesses, labor unions, Trump administration officials, and many others. We will continue to partner with Chairman Graves and Ranking Member Larsen to enact additional NTSB recommendations and make American skies safer.”

Background

The ROTOR Act enacts a long-standing recommendation from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB): that all aircraft required to broadcast their locations via ADS-B Out should receive those same signals in the cockpit. This capability, known as “ADS-B In,” is already widely used by many general aviation pilots. The latest push to expand ADS-B In comes one year after the 2025 midair collision near Reagan National Airport between an American Airlines flight and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter that killed 67 people.

The ROTOR Act passed the Senate by unanimous consent in December.

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