After years of discussion, an airline passenger bill of rights may move closer to reality this fall after high-profile strandings brought more attention and momentum to the issue.

Passenger advocates say travelers need basic protections, including the right to get off a plane three hours into a tarmac delay. Airlines, which have fended off such edicts in the past, say they could unintentionally lead to more delays and cancellations if planes are required to head back to gates instead of waiting for clearance.

Incidents this year sparked renewed interest in the issue. The most notable involved a Continental Airlines regional jet with 47 passengers that was stuck on the tarmac for about six hours in Rochester, Minn., in August, after a representative of Delta Air Lines subsidiary Mesaba Airlines incorrectly told the pilots that passengers weren't allowed into the terminal, according to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

Mesaba said at the time it "respectfully disagrees" with that finding.

"The Rochester Continental Express Flight really illustrated for people just how bad it can be," said Kate Hanni, executive director of FlyersRights.org, which she formed after being stuck on a delayed American Airlines jet for nine hours. "It was huge."

Bills to regulate airline practices in unusual delays have gotten bottled up in recent years. But a passenger bill of rights provision --- including a right to deplane after a three-hour ground delay, a requirement that airlines provide food, water, adequate restrooms, cabin ventilation and access to necessary medical treatment --- is now part of a Senate bill to reauthorize funding for the Federal Aviation Administration.

"We see a good chance of passage," said Caleb Tiller, a spokesman for the National Business Travel Association. "There's a lot of public support behind it. There's good momentum for passenger bill of rights broadly and on the Hill specifically."