The U.S. House of Representatives passed aviation safety legislation on Tuesday by a vote of 396-10, mandating collision-avoidance and surveillance equipment on aircraft operating around busy airports in direct response to the January 29, 2025 midair collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport that killed all 67 people aboard both aircraft.

The bill, called the Alert Act, now moves to the Senate, where key lawmakers and the victims' families argue it still needs strengthening before it can become law.

The legislation requires aircraft flying around busy airports to carry Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast In (ADS-B In) systems, which receive data on the positions of other aircraft. The National Transportation Safety Board has recommended the technology since 2008, and Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy has said such a system would have prevented the collision that sent both aircraft into the Potomac River. Most aircraft already carry the complementary ADS-B Out systems that broadcast their own positions. The House bill additionally requires the next generation of collision avoidance systems to be installed alongside ADS-B In, giving pilots audible alerts about nearby traffic rather than only a visual display.

Sponsored by Republican Rep. Sam Graves of Missouri and Democratic Rep. Rick Larsen of Washington, the bill secured the two-thirds majority it needed under House rules that barred amendments. Two key House committees had unanimously advanced the measure last month. It drew backing from key industry groups, though the Air Line Pilots Association expressed concern that bundling the uncertified collision avoidance system with the ADS-B In mandate could delay installation of the locator equipment, since the newer system has not yet been fully certified.

The path through the Senate is uncertain. Separate Senate-crafted legislation, the ROTOR Act, fell one vote short in the House. Sens. Ted Cruz, Republican of Texas, and Maria Cantwell, Democrat of Washington, have both said the Alert Act requires improvement. "A warning to my colleagues in the House: the Alert Act would not deliver the safety measures necessary to prevent another midair collision, as it lacks the critical improvements our aviation system needs," Cruz posted on X before the vote.

The NTSB's position shifted as the bill evolved. Homendy earlier sharply criticized the original version as a "watered down" measure that would not do enough to prevent future tragedies. The board now says the amended legislation addresses its recommendation and requires the Federal Aviation Administration, the Transportation Department and the military to take needed actions.

The families of the 67 victims pressed two main concerns before the vote: strict timelines to guarantee the reforms are completed, and tighter limits on military exemptions. They worry the House bill would allow military aircraft to keep flying without broadcasting their locations on routine training flights, not only on classified missions. Army policy at the time of the collision mandated that its helicopters fly with the system off to conceal their locations — even though the Black Hawk involved was on a training flight, not a sensitive mission.

"January 29, 2025 made clear what is at stake. The 67 lives lost that day should be honored with an improved system that prevents this from happening again," the main families group said in a statement Tuesday. "And the flying public should not have to wait longer than necessary for those protections to be in place."

Democratic Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, whose Virginia district lost a number of constituents in the crash, urged colleagues during debate to address all 50 recommendations from the NTSB's final report. "It wasn't just one issue that led to this crash. It was a combination of systemic problems that made our national airspace unsafe," Subramanyam said.

The crash remains the deadliest aviation accident on U.S. soil since 2001. The American Airlines flight had departed Wichita, Kansas; the victims included 28 members of the figure skating community. NTSB investigators concluded that a helicopter route in the approach path of a Reagan National runway did not ensure adequate separation between helicopters and aircraft landing on the secondary runway, and that the route was never regularly reviewed. The board cited the route's poor design and air traffic controllers' reliance on pilots to see and avoid other aircraft as key factors, alongside systemic weaknesses and years of ignored warnings that board members examined at a late-January hearing.

Tim and Sheri Lilley, whose son was the copilot of the airliner, said any final legislation must "reflect the risks in today's operating environment and ensure pilots have the information and technology they need to identify developing situations earlier." The families also want stronger oversight of any exemptions that permit the military to fly with locator systems switched off.

House and Senate negotiators must now reconcile the Alert Act with the Senate's demands, with the scope of military exemptions and implementation timelines the principal points of contention.