WASHINGTON, May 16 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden

signed on Thursday sweeping aviation legislation that will boost

U.S. air traffic controller staffing, increase funding to avert

runway close-call incidents and speed up refunds for canceled

flights.

The $105 billion, five-year measure reauthorizes the Federal

Aviation Administration. It prohibits airlines from charging

fees for families to sit together, requires airplanes to be

equipped with 25-hour cockpit recording devices, raises maximum

civil penalties for airline consumer violations from $25,000 per

violation to $75,000 and boosts aircraft production scrutiny.

"Following flight disruptions, runway close calls and

consumer frustrations, this law is set to deliver the safest,

most reliable aviation system in the world," said Senate

Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell. "Plane manufacturers

will see more safety inspectors on factory floors and tougher

safety standards from the FAA."

Biden has repeatedly clashed with air carriers, calling for

new stricter consumer rules and harshly criticizing them for

imposing fees. His administration has also aggressively moved to

block further consolidation in the passenger airline industry,

including successfully blocking a tie-up between JetBlue Airways ( JBLU )

and Spirit Airlines ( SAVE ) and quashing an alliance

between JetBlue ( JBLU ) and American Airlines ( AAL ).

The law also adds five daily round-trip takeoff and

landing slots at busy Washington National Airport, which Delta

Air Lines ( DAL ) had lobbied for. The bill also directs the FAA

to deploy advanced airport surface technology to help prevent

collisions.

Efforts to boost aviation safety in the United States

have taken on new urgency after a series of near-miss incidents,

as well as January's door plug mid-air emergency on an Alaska

Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 flight.

FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said the bill "allows for

more runway safety technology, more air traffic controllers and

stronger oversight of aircraft production."

The bill also will allow Boeing ( BA ) to continue to produce its

767 freighter for another five years through 2033 in the United

States, giving it an exemption from efficiency rules taking

effect in 2028.

The bill aims to address a shortage of 3,000 air traffic

controllers by directing the FAA to implement improved staffing

standards and to hire more inspectors, engineers and technical

specialists.

The bill does not raise the mandatory pilot retirement age

to 67 as House lawmakers had sought to do last year and retains

pilot training requirements.

Congress will not establish minimum seat size

requirements, leaving that instead to the FAA. The bill requires

the Transportation Department to create a dashboard that shows

consumers the minimum seat size for each U.S. airline.

Lawmakers also rejected many other consumer provisions

the Biden administration had sought, including requiring

compensation for lengthy airline-caused delays as is the case in

Europe.

The bill reauthorizes the National Transportation Safety

Board and boosts staffing at the safety investigation agency. It

also seeks to boost adoption of drones and flying air taxis into

the national airspace and extends through Oct. 1 existing

government counter-drone authority.