FAA Taking Steps Toward Regulating Commercial Spaceflight

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) takes action as commercial space flight is quickly approaching reality.

The Human Space Flight Occupant Safety Aerospace Rulemaking Committee for the Commercial Space Transportation Industry was established, according to a Thursday announcement by the FAA.

The creation of standards for "commercial human spaceflight occupant safety" will be supervised by this group as the number of commercial space operations rises, WHNT News 19 reported.

The action is being taken as the October 2023 deadline for the Congressional ban on laws governing commercial human spaceflight approaches.

The only FAA rules being enforced now call for crew members and spaceflight participants to be aware of the risks associated with space travel and to fly under conditions of written informed consent.

The Committee's Tasks

The newly established committee, co-chaired by Dr. Mary Lynne Dittmar, Chief Government and External Relations Officer of Axiom Space, and Dr. Minh Nguyen, Executive Director of the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation, will compile suggestions from business and other stakeholders to assist the FAA in developing a knowledgeable and thoughtful regulatory framework for commercial human spaceflight occupant safety. The FAA will receive these suggestions next summer, SpaceRef reported.

Federal law prohibits the FAA from overseeing the safety of passengers on space launch or reentry vehicles, except for incidents involving fatalities, severe injuries, or near misses. To provide the sector enough time to develop new products and expand, this regulatory learning period was first enforced in 2004 and later extended.

In addition to the rulemaking committee, the FAA is partnering with multiple groups to create voluntary consensus standards, revising its recommendations for commercial human spaceflight occupant safety, and supporting human spaceflight research.

US Congress Also Needs To Act

The FAA still needs to have the power to make rules regarding the safety of human spaceflight, but the committee does constitute a move in that direction. Except in serious mishaps, the FAA is not allowed to regulate passenger safety on board launch vehicles even though it has authority over launch safety for individuals on the ground. Instead, the FAA mandates that crew members sign a lengthy "informed consent" form after receiving substantial information on the dangers and hazards of spaceflight.

US Congress must act to provide the FAA with the ability to alter this rule. There are signs that Congress may move shortly, perhaps prolonging the suspension of restrictions for commercial human spaceflight. The original ban was implemented to prevent impeding the growth of an industry, per TechCrunch. The moratorium will end in October unless Congress renews it.