Overview
- The House passed the FY2026 defense bill 312-112 with Section 373, which permits military rotary-wing training in the D.C. Special Flight Rules Area if flights provide TCAS-compatible alerts or receive a waiver.
- NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy condemned the provision as a 'significant safety setback,' stressing TCAS limitations at low altitude and noting it failed to avert the January collision that killed 67 people.
- Section 373 allows the military secretary, with the transportation secretary’s concurrence, to waive the alerting requirement for national security; waivers over 30 days require notice to Congress and a risk assessment.
- Sens. Ted Cruz and Maria Cantwell filed amendments to strike Section 373 and insert their bipartisan ROTOR Act, while victims’ families and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser urged enforceable ADS‑B Out mandates.
- Post-crash, FAA and DoD required ADS‑B Out broadcasting in the region; the ROTOR Act advanced out of committee in October, and the Senate must now decide whether to keep, amend, or replace the House language.