Next-Gen Collision Avoidance Act

Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress an action plan for advancing the deployment of the Airborne Collision Avoidance System-X (in this section referred to as ACAS–X), ACAS–Xa, ACAS–Xr, ACAS–Xo, ACAS–Xu, ACAS–sXu, ACAS–Xp, or any variant or successor technology, in the national airspace system. The Administrator shall publish the action plan in a publicly available format not later than 10 days after submitting such action plan to Congress.

In developing the action plan under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall include—

(A) a strategic roadmap for the deployment of ACAS–X technology, including steps required for widespread adoption among aircraft operators;

(B) actions and funding necessary to complete any applicable research, development, testing, evaluation, and standards development needed to support the certification of such technology;

(C) plans for engagement with appropriate stakeholders, including—

(i) aircraft operators;

(ii) aviation safety experts outside the FAA;

(iii) avionics manufacturers;

(iv) aircraft manufacturers;

(v) general aviation organizations;

(vi) organizations representing certified collective bargaining representatives of airline pilots;

(vii) labor organizations representing air carrier pilots, including the principal organization representing the largest certified collective bargaining representative of airline pilots; and

(viii) any other stakeholders determined appropriate by the Administrator;

(D) engagement with foreign civil aviation authorities to harmonize international standards for certification of such technology;

(E) ACAS–X interoperability considerations for aircraft operators (including rotorcraft operators) equipped with ADS–B Out and ADS–B In equipment;

(F) an assessment of safety benefits for aircraft operators equipping with such technology, including civil operators; and

(G) any recommendations for administrative or legislative action, as determined appropriate by the Administrator, to advance such technology deployment.

The Administrator may take actions, as appropriate, to implement the action plan developed under paragraph (1).

Not later than 30 days after the date on which the Administrator submits the action plan under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall brief the appropriate committees of Congress on the contents of such action plan and any prospective actions to implement such plan.

In this section:

The term ADS–B In means onboard avionics equipment that receives and processes Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast transmissions that are broadcast in accordance with sections 91.225 and 91.227 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulations), and other aviation advisory information from ground stations, that provides the aircraft with awareness to the location of other aircraft and traffic advisories.

The term ADS–B Out —

(A) has the meaning given such term in section 91.227 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations; and

(B) broadcasts information from the aircraft in accordance with sections 91.225 and 91.227 of such title 14 (or any successor regulations).

The term appropriate committees of Congress means the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives.

The term FAA means the Federal Aviation Administration.

The term rotorcraft has the meaning given such term in section 1.1 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulation).