Senators Introduce Bill to Prevent Repeat of Potomac Collision

Proposed legislation would enhance coordination between the FAA and Department of Defense.

Zach Vasile

Friday, June 06, 2025 at 03:00 PM ET

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Edited By:

Travis Tingle

A Delta aircraft takes off from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. [Shutterstock/Andrew Mauro]

Key Takeaways:

U.S. senators introduced the "Safe Operation of Shared Airspace Act" following a deadly mid-air collision near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) to improve coordination between commercial and military flights.
The bill mandates military and other federal non-commercial flights to use the ADS-B Out navigation system, enhancing aircraft visibility and preventing similar incidents where military aircraft may be functionally invisible.
It aims to strengthen the FAA by shielding it from future hiring freezes, boosting controller hiring, and establishing an office to coordinate flight paths and facilitate information sharing with the Pentagon.
Specific provisions are included to improve airspace safety at and around DCA, where the collision occurred, and other Class B airports through joint FAA-Pentagon safety reviews.

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A group of Democratic U.S. senators have introduced a bill aimed at better coordinating commercial and military flights in response to a midair collision earlier this year that killed 67 people.

The Safe Operation of Shared Airspace Act would require military and other noncommercial federal flights to use the ADS-B Out navigation system that commercial flights do, shield the FAA from future hiring freezes, and establish an agency office to oversee the coordination of flight paths with the Pentagon.