▶ 0:18:09of other committees, we request that member, before he or she offers the amendment, have a letter from the respective committee chair indicating their waiver. Today, the committee will mark up H.R. the Air Space Location [clears throat] and Height Risk Transparency Act of otherwise known as the ALERT Act. Today, we are meeting to mark up the portion of the ALERT Act that's under HASC's jurisdiction.
▶ 0:18:38It is uncommon for HASC to mark up legislation outside of the NDAA, but this is critically needed legislation to improve aviation safety, and it cannot wait. Last year's mid-air collision between Army helicopter and a passenger jet on approach to Reagan National should not have happened.
▶ 0:18:58The NTSB completed their investigation last month, and their report included 13 recommendations to the Army and the Pentagon to ensure another tragedy like this never happens again. Title two of the ALERT Act carries out all 13 of those recommendations. In fact, the NTSB states that the bill before us not only meets their but in most cases exceeds them.
▶ 0:19:27For instance, the NTSB made several recommendations to the Army to improve its training and safety management system. The ALERT Act requires all the military services to make their safety improvements, not just the Army. The ALERT Act also addresses concerns raised by the Department of War with the bill that passed the Senate.
▶ 0:19:47The bill before us ensures our bombers, fighters, and other class by air fact aircraft can continue to execute their critical national security missions without revealing their location to our Improving aviation safety and protecting our national security are not mutually By taking our time and following regular order, we have produced a bill that does I thank the NTSB and the Pentagon for working with us throughout this process.
▶ 0:20:15I also want to thank Chairman Graves and ranking members Larson and Smith as well staff on both committees for their hard Finally, I want to express my deepest condolences to the families, friends, and loved ones of those lost in this terrible accident. I also want to thank the Pat Pat 25 and the flight 3532 families for their tireless efforts to ensure a tragedy like this never occurs again.
▶ 0:20:42Chairman, I recognize my friend the ranking member for any opening statement he may have. Uh thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for your leadership on this. And I too want to thank our our colleagues in the transportation infrastructure committee for working on this issue and the NTSB um and of course the families um who dedicated the tragic experience to trying to figure out a solution to prevent it from happening again. I really appreciate their work on that. On January 29th, 2025, 67 people died in a collision over the Potomac.
▶ 0:21:11I want to start by recognizing the families of the victims of this tragedy and extend our deepest condolences. This tragedy was 100% preventable. The The collision highlighted systemic failures in how civilian and military aircraft operate in shared airspace. And we have seen multiple incidents since that that that further demonstrate a continued lack of coordination between the FAA and the Department of Defense.
▶ 0:21:35Congress must address these fundamental flaws in our national airspace space system and ensure that what happened at DCA never happens again. And I really want to emphasize that point. The lack of cooperation between the FAA and the D is deeply troubling. Even after this incident, we had the situation in El Paso where the FAA shut down the airport, originally saying they were going to have to shut it down for 10 days with no explanation because again of a lack of coordination between DOD and the FAA.
▶ 0:22:04Also in this case, the CBP got involved as well. Simply unacceptable. They have to work together. I understand the urgency of the military missions, but when they are operating in civilian airspace here in the United States, they also have to prioritize guys working with the FAA to deconflict. That coordination has got to get better.
▶ 0:22:25For the past several weeks, our committee has worked across the aisle to develop an updated version of the Alert Act, which addresses recommendations from the NTSB their their accident report. The portion of this legislation in the House Armed Services Committee's jurisdiction has one goal, to ensure that military operations do not create unnecessary risk in our national airspace. This legislation drives key changes in military flight operations.
▶ 0:22:52Unclassified and proficiency flights will no longer be allowed to operate without transmitting ADSB. ADSB out will be required on manned rotary aircraft in the national airspace. ADSB in will be required on all mobility and rotary aircraft, and all ADSB equipment and associated systems will be subject to regular inspections.
▶ 0:23:15The Alert Act narrows the definition of special mission aircraft, closing the loophole that allowed routine flights by senior government officials and military officers to fly without ADSB transmitting. The bill also improves information sharing between the FAA and DOD, strengthens safety management systems, and addresses other NTSB recommendations listed in the final report.
▶ 0:23:37I want to thank Chairwoman Homendy Homendy and the entire NTSB staff for identifying the root causes of the crash, providing meaningful and actionable recommendation, and for coordinating with our committee as we worked on the Alert Act. I again also want to thank the families who engaged in this process. What they have been through is something no family should ever have to experience. And the fact that they chose to channel that into making sure it doesn't happen to someone else, that means a great deal and should not go unrecognized.
▶ 0:24:08While our focus today is on the Department of Defense, the NTSB report exposed multiple FAA failures as well. I know our colleagues on Transportation Infrastructure Committee have worked to address those issues. I look forward to the outcome of their markup as well. Today is a meaningful step towards addressing the systemic issues that caused the devastating crash last year. This committee has an important oversight role going forward, and I'm committed to seeing it through. We recognize this bill is not a complete solution to the problem.
▶ 0:24:37This is an ongoing thing where we need to exercise our oversight uh responsibility for DOD and to make sure that all of these steps are followed through. I uh thank the chairman, and with that I yield back. I now call up HR 7613. I understand that a copy of the bill has been made available and distributed to member offices on Tuesday, March 24th. Without objection, the first reading of the bill is dispensed with.
▶ 0:25:05Without objection, the bill shall be considered in as read and open to amendment at any I have an amendment in the nature of a substitute. I understand that a copy has been made available and distributed to members' offices on Tuesday, March 24th. Without objection, the amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be considered as read for purposes of amendment shall be considered as original text for purposes of amendment and shall be open to amendment at any point.
▶ 0:25:32Is there any discussion on the amendment in the nature of a substitute or the underlying bill? Mr. Chairman. Mr. Keating. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. We're here today because of a a tragedy. A tragedy, as we know, uh that was sadly no surprise and one that could have and should have been averted. The data was there. The warning signs were there. The pattern was there.
▶ 0:25:57Since 1987, pilots have reported at least 30 near midair collisions at Reagan National Airport, many of them involving military aircraft and And in just a few years, the number's even more striking. Between 2021 and the National Transportation Safety Board identified more than 15,000 near miss events at DCA. Situations where aircraft came dangerously close to one another one another.
▶ 0:26:26Within that, there were dozens of cases where aircraft were separated by just a fraction of what safety standards require. And this was not a one-time failure. This is a system sending repeated And the question before us is simple.
▶ 0:26:44Why did these warnings not lead to You know, in in in our country right uh for military practices, we do not need actual real airspace or real terrain spaces for exercises. For the mission that brought Osama bin Laden to justice, US forces built a full-scale replica of the compound, rehearsed operations over and over again, adjusting tactics, identifying risks, refining every detail of the execution.
▶ 0:27:13And more recently, uh the US government uh extracted uh Nicholas Maduro and and his wife from the presidential palace, again building replicas, target sites, simulating those missions. The mission succeeded in part because the risks were discovered before the operation, not during it. And that's the point. The goal of simulation is not to get better at reacting to danger.
▶ 0:27:39It's to ensure that you never encounter that danger in the first place in the real In fact, when simulation's done well, the need for high-risk real-world training runs should be minimized, not relied on. That's exactly the lesson we should take from what happened at DCA. We had the We had the near misses, thousands of And I believe this legislation will go a long way into changing that. It ensures that near misses are not treated as isolated incidents, but as early warning signals.
▶ 0:28:09It requires the FAA to connect the dots across safety data and and identify patterns before they escalate. And it creates accountability so that when risks are identified, they are acted on quickly and decisively. It allows us to identify problems in the data rather than in disaster. To correct the course before rather than after lives are lost. The Rotor Act is also critically important.
▶ 0:28:34It addresses a specific and serious hazard, helicopter operations in congested airspace, and it must be brought to the floor again for action where, given the chance, it will undoubtedly pass. The data makes it clear. This is not just one issue. This is a pattern that was left unaddressed.
▶ 0:28:53Uh I hope that when we see thousands of near misses and the goal uh of that should not be to get better analyzing the facts after 67 people have lost their lives, but preventing it from happening in the first place. I thank you and I yield Gentleman yields back. Is there further Gentleman, Mr. Conway is recognized.
▶ 0:29:23I thank you, Mr. Chairman, and ranking member Smith. Uh among the many provisions of this bill, I am pleased to see updated requirements for collision prevention technology, specifically automatic dependent surveillance broadcast or ADSB out, which broadcasts an individual's position, altitude, and other critical information as the default practice for all DOD rotary uh aircraft uh operating within the national airspace system.
▶ 0:29:50This bill also highlights exceptions to vital uh, vital uh, to protect the missions and the lives of the many uh, who carry out sensitive national security missions. While these changes increase the safety of the airspace and make the necessary necessary safety requirements for military aircraft in a way that balances our national security concerns, I want to ensure the proper oversight of the department and the Uh, that is why I'm offering amendment. Now, I'm doing this too early, am I, uh, to offer an amendment?
▶ 0:30:21Is it We haven't gotten to amendments yet. This is on the underlying bill. We're going to do on block amendments in just a second and then we'll recognize everybody who has an amendment in the on block package.
▶ 0:30:36then I then I apologize if I may just have a few uh, extra minutes on the
▶ 0:30:41go ahead. Go ahead. uh, as uh, uh, everyone knows on January 29th, um, there was a devastating uh, crash uh, over the DCA airspace which included a person in my district. I want to respect the privacy of the individual and their family keeping their name private, but I believe it is critical that we as a Congress and certainly as members of this committee take action to prevent further loss of life.
▶ 0:31:07This legislation closes gaps that were identified by the N- National Transportation Safety Board after the conclusion af- uh, of its investigation and implements recommendations through increased training uh, for flight crews, flight data monitoring, and requirements for all military services to implement or update current safety management systems.
▶ 0:31:28Among its many provisions, I'm pleased to see updated requirements for collision prevention technology, specifically the automatic dependent surveillance broadcast or ADS-B out, which broadcasts an aircraft's position, altitude, and other critical information as the default practice for all DOD rotary wing aircraft uh, operating within the national airspace system. This bill also highlights exceptions to a vi- protect the missions and the lives of those carrying out sensitive national security missions.
▶ 0:31:57While these changes increase the safety of the airspace um, and make uh, necessary a safety requirements for military aircraft in a way that balances our national security concerns, I want to ensure proper oversight of the department and the president.
▶ 0:32:10That is why I'm offering amendment which requires the president to submit an annual report to the House and Senate Armed Services Committees identifying the people designated by the president as any other individual under the special mission exclusion in this Uh, this amendment requires transparency from the president to ensure the uh, the Congress is aware of how this exception is being utilized. This reporting requirement extends this transparency to any president, not just the current one.
▶ 0:32:37We owe uh, to the families of those lost in this accident to ensure that we're conducting continuous oversight and implementing critical safety requirements that prevent another tragedy like this from occurring. Thank you and I reserve my time. Do you have any other members
▶ 0:32:54wish to speak on the underlying bill, not the amendment package? Seeing none, uh, we will now consider on block package number one. I ask unanimous consent to call up on block package number one consisting of amendments that have been worked and approved with the minority. Without objection, so ordered. Will the clerk please distribute the on block amendment? Without objection, the amendments are considered as read.
▶ 0:33:19Uh, on block package number one is comprised of the following: log 5694 by Representative Rogers, log 5689 R1 by Representative Elfreth, log 5690 by Representative Bergman, log 65 log 5692 R2 by Representative Bergman, log 5688 R1 by Representative Takuda, log 5691 by Representative Takuda, log 5693
▶ 0:33:50R1 by Representative Conaway, log 5695 R1 by Representative Sorensen. Is [clears throat] there further discussion on the on block package? Mr. Thank you, Chairman. Few events in recent memory have shaken the national capital region like the collision over the Potomac last January. And I know I speak for everyone on this committee when I say we were profoundly disturbed and saddened by what happened that night.
▶ 0:34:17In fact, first responders fire uh, from Prince William County were on the scene within hours. First for a a rescue operation then a recovery in icy water water that So, today's markup is a step toward making sure a crash like that never happens again. I've been heartened by this committee's willingness to engage in its partners in good faith and produce a measure which includes meaningful safeguards to prevent future tragedies.
▶ 0:34:48In that vein, I'm offering two amendments that I worked with um, worked on with my friend Representative Don Beyer and I'm pleased that they were both included on block. One amendment adds a reporting provision requiring DOD to update Congress annually for 3 years on the number of training flights in the national capital This data will be critical for informing additional guardrails and to make sure that the reforms of the Alert Act are My second amendment requires DOD to report on the adoption
▶ 0:35:19of live virtual constructive training. Modern simulation technology can satisfy many proficiency training objectives without putting into an already congested airspace and to the degree that it makes sense, this technology could offer a path to reducing activity in the region. I thank everyone involved in crafting this bill. I thank Representative Beyer for his leadership in improving safety around DCA alongside my office.
▶ 0:35:45And I strongly urge my colleagues to vote in favor of the on block and for final Thank you and I yield back. Gentleman yields back. Chair now recognizes [clears throat] Mr. Sorensen from Illinois. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Um, I would like to first begin uh, to send my condolences to the loved ones of those that were lost aboard American 5342 and the Black Hawk. We must not let up until we know we've done everything to prevent this tragedy from happening again.
▶ 0:36:16Thank you, Chairman Rogers, to Ranking Member Smith and their teams for leading this effort to address the crash and strengthen aviation safety. I became a professional meteorologist partly because of the lessons that I learned as a kid as the weather was causing aviation And as the skies have become safer and we must continue to work to make sure that we understand what happened in every situation to ensure safety and lower
▶ 0:36:46every identifiable risk. The Army has conducted a command investigation into the crash and has made recommendations. This is a very important step. My amendment would require the Army to share their investigation with us in Congress and their timeline for implementing those recommendations be This amendment would also have the Army Inspector General ensure that the Army is implementing the recommendations and report back to Congress.
▶ 0:37:15That way we can determine if there's anything more the Army should be doing. Congress is given a constitutionally mandated role of oversight, which is why I believe that we all must ensure that all of the necessary changes are being made to protect any American who takes I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting amendment 5695. Mr. Chairman, I yield back. Gentleman yields back.
▶ 0:37:45Chair now recognizes gentlelady from Maryland, Ms. Elfreth. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I also want to echo all of my colleagues' just deep gratitude for the families of the 67 people lost last January. 67 uh, lives that were lost in a completely preventable uh, accident and I'm grateful to everybody here today, the committee staff, coming together and trying to find solutions on behalf of not just those 67 families, but but all Americans. Um, I also want to recognize a number of those lost were Marylanders.
▶ 0:38:13I also want to thank the Readiness Subcommittee for the closed door briefing last week that we had. I think it was eye-opening for many of us to try to get answers to this very frustrating um, incident. And I the result of what we're marking up today, I think is a a positive step in the right direction because even, you know, more than a year later, we are still learning new um, really tragic pieces of that accident including the fact that there were many near misses before and even a near miss almost
▶ 0:38:44immediately after uh, this tragedy at Reagan with a with a Black Hawk. Um, in the 9 months following that DCA crash, there have been at least 59 near midair collisions nationally between commercial airplanes and other piloted aircraft at takeoff or landing. The amendment included in today's on block and I want to thank the chair and the ranking member for including it is very simple.
▶ 0:39:05It requires the Department of Defense to define that near miss what a near miss accident wha- uh, is, provide a timely notice to Congress when there are near miss incidents of a DOD aircraft and then submit an annual report on such incidents in the national capital region where we know we have a tremendously congested airspace.
▶ 0:39:24In this report, the DOD will be required to identify the cause of the near miss incident and importantly, and this is so important, the modifications of standard operating procedures or policies to mitigate future risks. This is not just a check the box meeting between FAA and DOD. This is an an honest gut check of what went wrong and how we can prevent it moving forward.
▶ 0:39:46Um this is a common sense amendment that provides additional oversight and addresses these near miss incidents because if we don't properly learn from these incidents, we know that we may not get so lucky the next time. And when it comes to aviation safety, we simply cannot leave it up to luck. Again, I want to thank the families for their courage in continuing to advocate that this never happens to another uh another family in this country and thank the committee staff for including this common sense amendment in the on block and I urge my colleagues to support the amendment. I yield back. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
▶ 0:40:16General lady yields back. General now recognizes the general lady from Hawaii, Ms. Takuda. Thank you, Mr. Chair. We lost 67 people on January 29th, 2025. A collision between a passenger plane and a military helicopter. Two aircraft that should have seen each other coming. Families expecting a safe landing that they never got. Every one of them should have made it home that night.
▶ 0:40:44The National Transportation Safety Board found that a contributing factor in the collision was {quote} the limitations of traffic awareness and collision alerting systems on both aircrafts, which precluded effective alerting of the impending collision to the flight crews. {end quote} Plainly, that means the systems meant to prevent this tragedy didn't do their job. That is why it is so important that this legislation would require aircraft to be equipped with and use technologies like automatic dependent surveillance broadcast, also known as ADSB.
▶ 0:41:15It's life or death. Despite this essential step forward, it leaves the door open too wide in my humble opinion. I am concerned about exceptions in the legislation that would allow the Department of Defense to turn off ADSB, keeping it off, which broadcasts the location of a particular aircraft and combined with other safety systems enables automated collision avoidance alerts. The ANS we're marking up today is certainly an improvement from the introduced bill.
▶ 0:41:43The new text now restricts when the military can turn off ADSB out.
▶ 0:41:49However, it still allows for many exceptions, including classified flights. And while some of those may be necessary, out of respect for the families that lost lost loved ones in the January 2025 disaster, we need to scrutinize these exceptions. We cannot let national security become a cover for risking human lives. The truth is, we don't know how many helicopters in that airspace would fly without this feature under this bill. Is it 50? Is it 500?
▶ 0:42:18Is it 5,000 flights per year? The Department is required to implement mitigating measures when ADSB out is turned off, but we should seek to minimize the number of flights that aren't utilizing this important safety feature. My amendment would require the Department of Defense to report to Congress how many helicopter flights in congested airspaces, including within 30 miles of Washington National Airport, operated with ADSB out turned off and which exception was used.
▶ 0:42:48Congress must provide strong oversight over the Department and this reporting will help us better understand if this authority is being abused and used at a volume that possesses undue risk to travelers. I want to be absolutely clear.
▶ 0:43:01These exceptions to turning off ADSB should be used very sparingly because every flight in congested airspace without location transmitting puts the public at risk, especially if risk mitigation measures After the NTSB's report and the long litany of failures that resulted in this terrible and tragic loss of life, we must insist on verification and oversight so that Congress can hold the Department accountable and take further action if necessary to reduce risk to the public.
▶ 0:43:32Thank you again, Mr. Chair and ranking member, for holding this hearing, for having these on blocked amendments to the families. Our deepest and sincerest mahalo for your courage to be here, your advocacy in the face of such loss. I urge all my colleagues to support this measure and I yield back. General lady yields back. Is there any further discussion on the on block Seeing none, the question is on on block package number one. So many as are in favor will say I.
▶ 0:44:02Those opposed, no. The eyes have it. The amendment on block are agreed to. Uh are there any additional amendments uh to the amendment in the nature of a Tab three. If there are no further amendments, the question is on agreeing to the amendment in nature of a substitute as amended. So many as are in favor will say I. I. Those opposed, no. Pending the chair, the eyes have it.
▶ 0:44:32Nature The amendment nature of substitute is agreed to. Yeah, we we have some members who are in the T&I committee that are still finishing up. So uh we are going to need to have a recorded vote on final Uh so to wait on them to complete their duties and get over here, we will recess until 11:00, at which time we will reconvene for the recorded vote on final passage. We are in recess.
▶ 1:00:39We will now vote on reporting the bill favorably to the house. The chair recognizes gentleman from Virginia, Mr. Wittman for the purpose of offering a Mr. Chairman, I move that the committee report the bill HR 7613 as amended favorably to the house. Question is on the motion of the gentleman from Virginia. So many as are in favor will say I. I. Those opposed, no. Quorum being present, the eyes have it. Chair calls for a recorded vote. Members will record their vote using the assigned electronic device.
▶ 1:01:10The chairman will be voting I. Ranking member will be voting I as well. Clerk will open the machine and the members will vote. Salud, you got to push the green button.
▶ 1:02:01So we need to wipe it. Wipe it. We're going to have to No, we lost We lost members. Moultrie is on the board and he's not So Carbajal uses So Moultrie is on the board but he's not Carbajal used his remote, so we're going to have to rerun it.
▶ 1:02:36We'll just have to do a unanimous consent. Report Report Mr. Moultrie. Mr. Carbajal. Mr. Carbajal is I, Mr. Moultrie is not here. All right. We going to do the unanimous consent We are going to need to We had a member vote another member's machine by
▶ 1:03:06So we are going to need unanimous We are going to need unanimous consent to agree that we record Mr. Carbajal as voting I and Mr. Moultrie is not being present. Without objection? So ordered. have all members voted?
▶ 1:03:29Does any member need to change their We are holding for just a few seconds for Mr. Courtney. Y'all can give him grief when he gets here for being late and holding you up, but we'll give him a few more seconds.
▶ 1:03:59Yeah, so tell Greg to call it 50 call it either if If Courtney shows up in the next 10 seconds, we'll vote Courtney. Mr. Fallon. That's Ronnie Jackson's. Oh my god, he's like Fallon. He already All right, Mr. Fallon's reporting. Yes, sir. Mr. Courtney is in route. Here he is.
▶ 1:04:29Here's Courtney. Why is Uh indicator not working? Here Pat. Why is I haven't called for the vote to be closed. Okay, Mr. Fallon's a yes, Mr. Courtney Hey man, what happened?
▶ 1:04:56All right. I think we're going to have to UC. All right. We've lost members. No, I'm not revoting. We're not revoting yet. All We are having a technical issue with the recording machine and Mr. Courtney's machine is not working, nor is Mr. Fallon. So I ask unanimous consent to recognize Mr. Fallon as voting yes and Mr. Courtney as voting yes. Without objection? So ordered. Will the clerk record the vote and uh let us know the tally. Mr.
▶ 1:05:25Chairman, the eyes are 50 three and the the nays are zero. No, subtract one from Moultrie. Subtract one from Moultrie is not here. The eyes are 53, the nays are zero. Um The bill is recorded favorably.
▶ 1:05:56A quorum being present, the motion agreed to and without objection, the motion to consider reconsider is laid upon the Pursuant to clause 2L of House Rule 11, all members are entitled to not less than two calendar days to file supplemental minority additional dissenting views in writing.
▶ 1:06:15I ask unanimous consent that staff be authorized to make necessary conforming technical and clerical changes to the bill as amended and to remove from the bill as amended provisions that would cause the bill to be referred to another committee or would result in additional direct spending. Without objection, so ordered. Finally, I ask unanimous consent that the chairman be authorized to make such motions on the floor as are necessary to go to conference with the Senate on the bill HR 7613 or a similar Senate measure.
▶ 1:06:44With that, I thank you and we are adjourned.