Ntsb Warns That Defense Bill Could Undermine Aviation Safety Changes After Dca Crash - Beritaja

National Transportation Safety Board chairwoman Jennifer Homendy gave a beardown rebuke of a defense authorization measure that rolls backmost information improvements. The committee recommended the changes aft the January collision of a subject Black Hawk chopper and an American Airlines location pitchy adjacent Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, sidesplitting 67 people. Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

WASHINGTON — In an unusually harsh rebuke, the nation's apical information interrogator voiced concerns about a proviso successful the defense argumentation measure earlier Congress connected Wednesday, informing that it would undermine aviation information improvements made aft a deadly mid-air collision successful January.

"It's a information whitewash," National Safety Transportation Board chair Jennifer Homendy told reporters. "If it sounds for illustration I'm mad, I americium mad. This is shameful."

Homendy said the NTSB "vehemently" opposes a conception successful the monolithic National Defense Authorization Act that would rotation backmost information improvements that were recommended by the agency aft the collision of a subject Black Hawk chopper and an American Airlines location pitchy adjacent Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, sidesplitting 67 people.

After the crash, the Defense Department agreed to require subject craft to broadcast their position utilizing a exertion known arsenic ADS-B. But the NTSB warns the bill's connection would create exemptions to the argumentation — successful effect, recreating conditions that were successful spot astatine the clip of the DCA collision, which was the nation's deadliest aviation disaster successful much than 20 years.

"We should beryllium moving together successful business to forestall the adjacent accident, not inviting history to repetition itself by recreating the aforesaid conditions that were successful spot connected January 29th," Homendy said.

Homendy laid retired the NTSB's concerns in a letter to the president and ranking personnel of some the House Armed Services Committees and the Senate Committee connected Armed Services. She said nary legislators had approached her during the drafting of the NDAA, and she did not cognize who added the proviso successful question.

The committee leaders did not instantly respond to BERITAJA's petition for comment.

But immoderate lawmakers connected Capitol Hill stock the NTSB's concerns.

"As drafted, the NDAA protects the position quo, allowing subject craft to support flying successful DC airspace nether different rules and pinch outdated transmission requirements," said a associated connection from Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Jerry Moran (R-Kans.) and Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), the leaders of the Senate Committee connected Commerce, Science and Transportation. "This comes arsenic Pentagon information shows a spike successful subject craft accidents since 2020. The families of the victims merit accountability."

The senators urged their colleagues successful Congress to alternatively adopt the bipartisan ROTOR Act, which would require craft operators to equip their fleets pinch ADS-B exertion and limit exemptions for subject helicopters.

Family members of the victims of American Airlines Flight 5342 besides expressed interest about the connection successful the NDAA.

"The flying nationalist and each those that utilize our airspace merit amended than what this measure provides," said Tim and Sheri Lilley, whose son, Sam, was the first serviceman of Flight 5342, successful a statement. "Congress now has a choice: fortify this proviso and protect the walking nationalist aliases time off successful spot the aforesaid vulnerabilities that person already costs excessively galore group their lives."