FAA News Updates

Loved ones of the 67 people who died last year when an airliner and Army helicopter collided over Washington urged Congress and regulators to do more to prevent similar tragedies.

 A Delta Air Lines flight and a high-flying firework reportedly came into contact in the sky above Chicago as the city celebrated the Fourth of July holiday.

“We collided with a drone back there in the turn,” the pilot told an air traffic controller. “It hit us right above the cockpit.”

Several prominent freight brokerages have said the decision, while increasing legal exposure, will also reinforce industry safety practices.

“After extensive review, the FAA approved Boeing’s protocol for safely returning MD-11 airplanes to service,” the agency said May 11 in a statement.

The House bill, called the Alert Act, has the backing of industry groups, but lawmakers will now have to try to find a compromise that will satisfy the Senate.

Key senators and the families of the 67 victims killed in a 2025 midair collision over Washington think the bill needs to be strengthened.

The selected projects include a partnership between the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and companies Joby Aviation, Archer Aviation, Beta Technologies and Electra. 

Chair Jennifer Homendy said the House bill’s “watered-down” requirements wouldn’t do enough to prevent a future tragedy, and wouldn’t be as effective as a Senate bill that came up short of passing in the House.

Senators are pushing for changes to the NDAA after crash investigators warned the legislation would undo key safety reforms stemming from a collision between an airliner and Army helicopter.