A crane lifts a piece of American Airlines Flight 5342 from the Potomac River during recovery efforts on Feb. 3, 2025, in Arlington, Virginia. (Win McNamee, Getty Images/TNS)
WASHINGTON — Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, unveiled new legislation Tuesday aimed at addressing some of the factors in the deadly Jan. 29 midair collision between a Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines regional jet landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport.
Cruz is chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which has jurisdiction over aviation safety.
His bill focuses on helicopter routes near airports and Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast, an advanced surveillance technology that broadcasts information about an aircraft’s location, altitude, ground speed and other data.
Cruz said his legislation would institute new requirements for military and civilian aircraft to use ADS-B, which he said provides pilots and air traffic controllers a clear picture of what’s happening in the air.
“There cannot be a double standard in aviation safety,” Cruz said. “We should not tolerate special exceptions for military training flights operating in congested airspace. No matter the circumstances, any aircraft flying near commercial traffic must fully adhere to safety standards.”
The Black Hawk involved in the Jan. 29 crash was likely not transmitting ADS-B signals. Cruz said his bill would repeal a military exemption from ADS-B transmission requirements.
His legislation also would require the FAA to review helicopter routes near airports nationwide.
“We cannot have commercial airplanes and helicopters on a collision course ever again,” Cruz said.
Cruz and the top Democrat on the committee, Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington, have tangled with Army officials in the wake of the crash, pressing them to provide more information about helicopter operations near Reagan National.
At one point Cruz threatened to subpoena the Army.
Cantwell and other Senate Democrats also have offered legislation related to the crash that proponents say goes beyond the scope of Cruz’s proposal, with more aggressive ADS-B requirements.
Cantwell said in a statement she’s “committed to working with Chairman Cruz to ensure we get this right and honor the memory of those we lost.”
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy joined Cruz at his Tuesday news conference, saying there are a “few tweaks” he might make to the legislation, “but by and large, this is the right approach.”
Duffy said the cost of ADS-B is not exorbitant and worth the improved levels of safety.
The National Transportation Safety Board on Wednesday will start three days of investigative hearings examining the circumstances of the crash that killed all 64 people aboard the passenger jet and all three soldiers on the Army helicopter.
NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy joined Cruz at the news conference, saying the board has been recommending ADS-B for more than 20 years. Homendy called the technology a “game changer” for aviation safety.
In response to reporter questions, FAA administrator Bryan Bedford said military helicopters near Reagan National are now required to have ADS-B turned on unless they are on exempted missions, and in those cases, the area is closed to commercial air traffic.
President Donald Trump suggested shortly after the crash that standards for air traffic controllers might have played a role.
Asked about the potential role of air traffic controllers in the crash, Cruz highlighted billions included in the recently enacted “Big Beautiful Bill” allocated for air traffic control modernization.
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