HR2953 the Airspace Location and Enhanced Risk Transparency (ALERT) Act of 2026 has gained the approval of the House Transport and Infrastructure Committee as well as the Defence Oversight Committee.
Defence Committee approval is seen as a critical step since amendments to the ALERT Act include the repeal of section 373(a) of the most recent National Defence Authorisation Act which would have given TCAS and ADS-B waivers to military aircraft on training missions which drew the ire of NTSB Chairman Jennifer Homendy. Following the approval of the amended text the NTSB issued a statement on social media sounding it’s approval of the amended text of the Bill saying “We are grateful that they have sought out, seriously considered, and accepted the NTSB’s technical assistance,” adding the amended version calls of changes that “would address our recommendations.”
The Committees approval of the Act drew approval from a number of industry bodies including VAI who said in a statement that “The bipartisan bill responds directly to the NTSB’s final accident report and advances a comprehensive framework aimed at strengthening safety across the US National Airspace System (NAS). The ALERT Act addresses the full range of safety recommendations identified during the investigation and seeks systemwide improvements to reduce collision risk and improve operational coordination”.
Approval of the Act is not entire with Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) releasing a joint statement which argues that the the amended ALERT act will not do as much to improve safety as its own ROTOR Act which was rejected in a House vote in February noting “The ALERT Act, while ambitious in its goals, falls short on a strong and clear requirement for common-sense situational awareness technology recommended by the NTSB”.
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