The heads of the Senate transportation committee are railing against the US Department of Defense (DoD) for failing to turn over a document outlining US Army policies related to the use of ADS-B, an aircraft tracking system.
Senators Ted Cruz, chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation, and top committee Democrat Maria Cantwell are seeking the document as part of the senate’s inquiry into the deadly 29 January midair collision between a passenger jet and a US Army helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National airport.
“It is completely unacceptable that our request has been repeatedly ignored and that the Army continues to obstruct the committee’s investigation into this horrific accident,” senators Cruz and Cantwell said on 31 March. “We will consider using every option at our disposal to produce compliance and to ensure our investigation yields the answers the victims’ families and the American people deserve.”
At issue is a 9 August 2024 US Army memo titled “ADS-B Out Off Operations in the National Airspace”.
ADS-B – Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast – is a system that provides pilots and air traffic controllers with aircraft flight information, including position, speed and altitude. The ADS-B Out function transmits that data from aircraft, while ADS-B In systems receive the data.
The Federal Aviation Administration requires aircraft use ADS-B Out, though in 2019 it exempted government aircraft from the mandate when operating “sensitive” flights.
The Army memo sought by senators Cruz and Cantwell outlines “policies and procedures regarding the use – or lack thereof” by the army of ADS-B Out, the senators say.
“This memo is needed to evaluate potential legislation related to air traffic control and safe airspace operations in the national capital region,” their 27 March letter says.
Asked to comment about the request, the DoD says: “As with all congressional correspondence, the department responds directly to the requester.”
The 29 January tragedy saw a US Army Sikorsky UH-60L Black Hawk colide with a PSA Airlines MHIRJ CRJ700 regional jet near Reagan airport, sending both aircraft plummeting into the Potomac River. All 64 passengers and crew aboard the CRJ700 and all three crew on the Black Hawk died.
According to reports, the Black Hawk’s ADS-B Out system was not active.
In testimony prepared for a 27 March Senate hearing, US Army Brigadier General Matthew Braham said the service is investigating how frequently the army had been operating helicopters in the Washington region with the system off.
Aviation safety expert and former National Transportation Safety Board member John Goglia says that, prior to the accident, army helicopters flying near Washington, DC frequently did so while not using ADS-B Out, saying the service generally disliked having their aircraft tracked.
