EXCLUSIVE — A bipartisan group of House lawmakers is pushing for all federal military aircraft to be equipped with collision detection systems after the deadly crash between a federal aircraft and a commercial plane that killed 67 people.

Sponsored by Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL) and shared exclusively with the Washington Examiner, the Collision-Limiting Operational Upgrade for DOD, or CLOUD, Act would require the Defense Department to launch a study of the feasibility of equipping all DOD fixed and rotary aircraft with air-to-air and air-to-ground collision detection systems that are “compatible” with civilian aircraft. 

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Mills said in a statement to the Washington Examiner that the bill will “strengthen our military’s readiness” and is a step toward broader aviation safety reforms “to prevent future tragedies and improve airspace coordination nationwide.”

“After the tragic loss of 67 lives earlier this year in the collision at Reagan National Airport, it is important we enhance safety for our troops, our civilians, and our first responders who share our busy domestic airspaces,” Mills said. 

Co-sponsors include Republican Reps. Frank Lucas (OK), Rich McCormick (GA), and Jen Kiggans (VA), as well as Democrat Rep. Eugene Vindman (VA).

The bill comes after a Black Hawk helicopter on a training mission collided with an American Airlines passenger jet carrying 64 people. All 60 passengers and four American Airlines crew members, as well as the three-person crew on the military aircraft, were killed after the planes crashed into the Potomac River.

It was the United States’s first commercial flight fatality in 16 years.

The five sponsors of the CLOUD Act see the tragedy as an opening to modernize airspace security and safety. 

“As a 25-year Army veteran and a Virginian, I know how critical it is to my community and our country that we ensure the safety of both military and civilian aircrafts operating in shared airspace,” Vindman said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “The CLOUD Aircraft Act is a smart, commonsense step to prevent avoidable tragedies and save lives. I’m proud to support this bipartisan effort to modernize our aviation safety standards.”

Kiggans and McCormick, also veterans, said they understood the importance of safety in military aviation. The Virginia congresswoman said conducting a study on the feasibility of equipping the aircraft with the collision detection technology can “reduce risks” in crowded airspaces and “help prevent tragic accidents before they happen.”

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Lucas called Mills’s bill a “proactive and prudent” piece of legislation and said it is time for the government to improve its “outdated” aviation systems.

An investigation determined that personnel failures of both the Black Hawk pilot and air traffic controllers were to blame for the collision. Republicans, including President Donald Trump, blamed diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives for the crash, while Democrats criticized the president for recent cuts to the federal workforce and failure to fill vacancies within the Transportation Department as the reasons for the tragedy.