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Army helicopter that collided with American Airlines ( AAL ) jet

did not

have location transmitting on

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Senate Commerce Committee to hold hearing on March 27

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NTSB chair agrees to testify at hearing, FAA and Army

Aviation

heads yet to respond

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - Two senators asked the

U.S. Army to explain why it routinely failed to use a key safety

system during helicopter training flights after a deadly

collision in January between an Army Black Hawk helicopter and

an American Airlines ( AAL ) regional jet killed 67 people.

Senate Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz and Senator Jerry

Moran, who heads an aviation subcommittee, on Tuesday also urged

the head of Army Aviation to answer questions about the

collision and to testify at a March 27 hearing on the crash.

The Black Hawk did not have a key safety system known as

ADS-B operating at the time of the collision, investigators say.

ADS-B, or automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast, is an

advanced surveillance technology that transmits an aircraft's

location.

U.S. airline group Airlines for America last week called for

military aircraft to be required to use ADS-B near large

airports to broadcast their position to avoid collisions.

The Republican senators also wanted to know how often the

Army transports flag officers by helicopter and how often it

turns off ADS-B, an action permitted for military aircraft.

National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy

has agreed to testify at the hearing before the panel's aviation

subcommittee that will examine preliminary findings of the

January 29 crash.

The committee has also invited the acting head of the

Federal Aviation Administration, Chris Rocheleau, and Brigadier

General Matthew Braman, who is director of Army Aviation.

The FAA declined to say if Rocheleau would appear. The Army

did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Civilian airplanes must use ADS-B to broadcast their

location, but the FAA in 2019 gave the military an exemption in

rare circumstances. It appears the military is routinely failing

to use the safety system in training flights, lawmakers say.

On Friday, Senator Maria Cantwell, the top Democrat on the

Commerce Committee, pressed the Pentagon on its failure to use

the system.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on Tuesday the

department was continuing discussions with the Pentagon about

what they should deploy. Last month, he said it was time to

shrink unneeded military flights.

"If we have generals who are flying in helicopters for

convenience through this airspace, that's not acceptable. Get a

damn Suburban and drive - you don't need to take a helicopter,"

Duffy said.