ADSB Fee Tracking Still Hot Topic as Congress Debates

The practice of airports using ADS-B tracking in order to charge pilots landing fees is still generating controversy, with operators expressing their disapproval over the practice across the internet. 

More than 100 airports around the U.S. have signed on to use Vector Airport Systems PlanePass billing and collection program, which uses ADS-B data among other means to track aircraft movements and generate fees from operators.

“Our view always has been that ADS-B is a safety tool and should be used for that purpose, said Jim Coon, AOPA‘s s-v-p of government affairs and advocacy. “It was never intended to be used to collect fees.”

In June, Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed an ADS-B billing ban that prohibits the use of ADS-B data to charge fees to pilots flying aircraft weighing less than 12,500 pounds under Part 91 into law, joining Florida and Montana, with other states considering the measure.

“It does not prevent airports from collecting fees, Coon told AIN. “They can still collect fees, but they just can't use a safety tool to do so.”

Looking to avoid a patchwork of regulations that vary from state to state, federal legislation has been in the works since last year to restrict the practice. Both the House and Senate currently have aviation safety legislation under discussion that was developed in the aftermath of last year’s fatal midair collision in the skies over Washington, D.C. While the House version, the ALERT Act, includes language that would prevent the use of ADS-B data to collect fees, the Senate companion piece, the ROTOR Act, currently does not.

“What's happening now is that the House and Senate are now deliberating and trying to iron out all the differences between the ROTOR Act and the ALERT Act, explained Coon. And then once those differences are all ironed out, then the House and Senate will vote on an agreed-upon bill, and then it'll go to the President.” He hopes that will happen before the end of the year.