Sunflower State News

U.S. Senator Jerry Moran, chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and Innovation, issued a statement following the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) three-day investigative hearing into the January 29 midair collision near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). The incident involved American Airlines flight 5342 and an Army Blackhawk helicopter and resulted in 67 fatalities.

“Six months after the tragic crash near DCA, the NTSB laid out a series of failures it has uncovered so far in its investigation of the tragedy that claimed 67 lives, including Kansans. While there is no single factor that led to the crash on January 29, it is alarming that FAA failed to act on years of data and near misses indicating serious problems with the design of the mixed airspace around DCA. The FAA blamed their inaction on bureaucracy but did not take action to try and alleviate the bureaucratic roadblocks within the agency. That is no excuse,” said Sen. Moran.

He further noted findings from the NTSB investigation: “The NTSB uncovered long-term staffing issues at the control tower that were compounded by a culture of distrust among DCA air traffic controllers and a toleration for unacceptable risks; found inaccurate altitude readings on the helicopter; and discovered the ADS-B Out technology was not transmitting on the Blackhawk likely due to faulty equipment that the Army failed to identify and has now been found to be an issue on numerous other Army helicopters as well.”

Sen. Moran expressed appreciation for Chair Homendy’s efforts: “I commend Chair Homendy on her thorough investigation into this crash and her dedication in bringing to light the failures in our airspace. Despite numerous warnings signs of serious problems over the last several years, little was done to try and correct them, and these failures by the FAA, the Army and air traffic control cost 67 lives. I know the last few days have been painful for the families of the victims, and I assure them that Congress will not let these failures go unanswered. We cannot undo the tragic loss of life, but we can work to make certain it never happens again.”

In response to ongoing concerns about aviation safety around DCA since January's collision, Sen. Moran has taken several legislative actions over recent months. These include calls for restricting non-essential helicopter operations near DCA with Sen. Tammy Duckworth; pressing Army officials alongside Sen. Ted Cruz regarding their role in events leading up to January’s accident; questioning Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officials about their handling of near-miss data; introducing legislation requiring all aircraft in high-volume airspace use ADS-B technology; calling for audits into Department of Transportation (DOT) and Army responses; leading briefings with federal agencies about additional incidents involving military helicopters; questioning Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth about ADS-B use in military aircraft; joining colleagues in introducing legislation mandating location technology use in busy airspace; initiating reviews of flight routes near DC; and seeking Inspector General audits into Army aviation practices.