Airborne Collision Avoidance System upgrades

(a) In general Not later than 45 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish an aviation rulemaking committee (in this section referred to as the Committee) to review and develop findings and recommendations to require aircraft that are selected aircraft to be equipped with ACAS-Xa. (b) Composition The Committee shall consist of members appointed by the Administrator, including representatives of— (1) air carriers operating under part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, including regional air carriers and air carriers with a low-cost or ultra-low-cost business model; (2) air carriers operating under part 135 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations; (3) air carriers operating under part 91 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations; (4) business aviation operators; (5) cargo air carriers; (6) transport category aircraft manufacturers; (7) general aviation aircraft manufactures; (8) avionics manufacturers; (9) supplemental type certificate holders; (10) modification service providers; (11) exclusive bargaining representatives of air traffic controllers certified under section 7111 of title 5, United States Code; (12) the certified bargaining representative of aviation safety inspectors and engineers for the Federal Aviation Administration; (13) organizations representing certified collective bargaining representatives of airline pilots; (14) aviation safety experts with specific knowledge of human factors or human factors experts with specific knowledge of aviation safety; and (15) any other stakeholders the Administrator determines appropriate. (c) Considerations In developing the findings and recommendations under subsection (a) the Committee shall consider— (1) the anticipated modifications to the minimum operational performance standards of ACAS-Xa that are required by subsection (e)(1)(B); (2) the results of the evaluation under section 101; (3) the anticipated certification deadline for ACAS-Xa given the technical complexity and requisite procedures for approval; (4) the soonest practicable deadline for equipping newly manufactured selected aircraft; (5) the soonest practicable deadline to retrofit existing selected aircraft with ACAS-Xa that considers— (A) the feasibility of using the Line Replaceable Units of existing collision avoidance systems in such aircraft; (B) the feasibility of using existing antennas of existing collisions avoidance systems in such aircraft; and (C) the commercial availability of all necessary components associated with ACAS-Xa; (6) actions the Administrator can take to prioritize the certification and installation of ACAS-Xa; (7) related training for air traffic controllers, pilots, and others; and (8) any other considerations the Committee determines appropriate. (d) Report Not later than 1 year after the date of establishment of the Committee, the Committee shall submit to the Administrator and the appropriate committees of Congress a report containing the findings and recommendations of the Committee. (e) Rulemaking and modification of minimal operating performance standards (1) In general Not later than 18 months after the submission of the report under subsection (d), the Administrator shall— (A) issue a notice of proposed rulemaking to require selected aircraft to be equipped with ACAS-Xa; and (B) modify the minimum operational performance standards for ACAS-Xa, to include— (i) traffic advisory aural alerts to include clock position, relative altitude, range and vertical tendency; and (ii) the integration of directional traffic symbols. (2) Contents The notice of proposed rulemaking described in paragraph (1)(A) shall include, at a minimum— (A) appropriate guidance for certification of ACAS-Xa; (B) defined standards for the modification described in paragraph (1)(B); (C) a deadline for any newly manufactured selected aircraft to be equipped with ACAS-Xa, based on the findings and recommendations developed pursuant to subsection (b)(1); and (D) a deadline for existing selected aircraft to be retrofit with ACAS-Xa, based on the findings and recommendations developed pursuant to subsection (b)(1). (3) Final rule Not later than 1 year after the issuance of the notice of proposed rulemaking required under paragraph (1)(A), the Administrator shall issue a final rule to carry out the requirements of this section. (f) Selected aircraft defined In this section, the term selected aircraft means aircraft that are required to be equipped with traffic alert and collision avoidance systems as required in part 121.356 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, and part 135.180 of such title.