Fight Gains Steam to Keep ADS-B a Safety Tool, Not a ‘Cash Register’

Support grows for the federal Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act to prevent the use of aviation safety data for collecting pilot fees.

Meg Godlewski

Thursday, March 12, 2026 at 10:29 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

U.S. Capitol [Credit: Adobe Stock]

Key Takeaways:

The Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act (PAPA) is gaining support to prohibit the use of Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) data for collecting fees from pilots, asserting ADS-B's primary purpose is aviation safety, not revenue generation.
Organizations like AOPA, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), state lawmakers, and airports widely support PAPA, arguing that using ADS-B data for fees undermines its safety function and could discourage its use.
While several states have passed or are considering legislation to ban the use of ADS-B for revenue, proponents stress that a uniform federal law like PAPA is essential for a comprehensive national solution to enhance aviation safety.

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Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) was created to enhance aviation safety, not as a revenue-generating tool. That’s the message the nation’s lawmakers are getting as a bill to prohibit the use of ADS-B data to collect fees from pilots by enacting the Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act (PAPA) is gaining more support.

According to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), support for PAPA is growing across the country with state lawmakers and aviation safety officials expressing their support.