FAA Readies to Regulate Commercial Human Spaceflight Safety

The existing Congressional prohibition on regulating commercial human spaceflight is set to expire in October.

Thursday, July 27, 2023 at 03:46 PM ET

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The FAA's 25-member rulemaking committee includes representatives from the FAA and industry, including Virgin Galactic, Boeing, SpaceX, and Blue Origin. Here, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon capsule stand ready for launch at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in early 2023. [Photo: Axiom Space]

Key Takeaways:

The FAA is taking new steps to address passenger safety in commercial space flights due to their recent rise and the upcoming expiration of a Congressional regulatory prohibition in October.
A 25-member rulemaking committee, including representatives from the FAA and major space companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin, has been formed to study the cost and development of future occupant safety regulations.
Currently, the FAA cannot regulate commercial human spaceflight occupant safety unless a serious incident occurs, with participants only informed of existing hazards in writing.

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The recent rise in commercial space flights is prompting the FAA to take new steps related to passenger safety.

The agency has launched a rulemaking committee to examine the cost and development of possible future regulations related to occupant safety during commercial space flights, it announced Thursday. The 25-member committee includes representatives from the FAA and industry, including Virgin Galactic, Boeing, SpaceX, and Blue Origin.