Most US pilots probably don’t know that an FAA license is required to conduct any kind of commercial space launch or reentry within the United States. Last year, the agency office that issues these permits said it was busier than ever, with 41 commercial space operations launches and reentries. One launch in May, a SpaceX Falcon 9, carried two US astronauts from the Kennedy Space Center to the International Space Station. The flight was the first US launch of a crewed vehicle in a decade.
FAA Says 2020 A Record Year for Space Launches
Key Takeaways:
- The FAA requires a license for commercial space launches and reentries within the U.S., reporting a record 41 operations in 2020, including the first U.S. crewed launch in a decade.
- Increased efficiency in 2020 was attributed to a reorganization of the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation and a new rule that modernized licensing with a single, performance-based regime.
- For 2021, the FAA plans to test new technologies for integrating space vehicles into the National Airspace System and will develop a National Spaceport Strategy.
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