The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued an interpretation of its regulations in which it concludes that NASA astronauts can participate on an operational basis in commercially space launches licensed by the FAA. Key excerpts from the interpretation are below:
“This interpretation responds to a request from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) regarding whether the space transportation regulations of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) would restrict NASA astronauts from performing operational functions during a commercial space launch or reentry under license from the FAA….
“As can be seen, the FAA’s concern with space flight participants interacting with a launch or reentry vehicle was based on the possibility that space flight participants would not have the proper vehicle and mission-specific training. However, as NASA notes, NASA astronauts must meet rigorous medical and training requirements, which include training specific to each mission, launch vehicle, and reentry vehicle. Because NASA astronauts are not the untrained space-flight participants originally contemplated by the FAA, the considerations underlying the policy have, at best, a limited applicability to NASA astronauts. Thus, for the scenarios currently envisioned, NASA astronauts may engage in operational activities during a licensed launch or reentry to ensure safety and mission success….
“In conclusion, Chapter 509 and the FAA’s regulations impose no operational constraints on NASA astronauts for the scenarios envisioned here.”
The full interpretation is reproduced after the break.
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