2024-05384

Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: • the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document • the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to • the agency docket number / agency internal file number • the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration • 14 CFR Parts 415, 417, 431, 435 AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of Transportation (DOT). ACTION: Notification of policy. SUMMARY: The FAA announces a clarification of the FAA's Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) policy regarding the review of payloads to be launched or reentered under an FAA license. Given the increasing complexity of payloads on the growing volume of FAA-licensed launches or reentries, the FAA is updating its payload review policy to require applicants for a payload review to disclose the contents and composition of all payloads, including those of all hosted payloads. DATES: Effective March 14, 2024. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Daniel Murray, (202) 267-9237. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Background The Commercial Space Launch Act of 1984, as codified and amended at 51 U.S.C.—Commercial Space Transportation, ch. 509, Commercial Space Launch Activities, 51 U.S.C. 50901-50923 (the Act), authorizes the DOT and the FAA, through delegations, to oversee, license, and regulate commercial launch and reentry activities, and the operation of launch and reentry sites as carried out by United States (U.S.) citizens or within the U.S. Consistent with the authority conferred under 51 U.S.C. Chapter 509, the FAA reviews all payloads to be launched or reentered under an FAA license to determine the effect of the payload's launch or reentry on public health and safety, safety of property, U.S. national security or foreign policy interests, or international obligations of the U.S. Applicants seeking a vehicle operator license under 14 CFR part 450 must receive a favorable payload determination under § 450.43 if they propose to carry a payload on their vehicle. Operators seeking to launch or reenter a payload under a legacy license [1] (14 CFR parts 415, 417, 431, or 435) must receive a favorable payload determination under subpart D of part 415 or 431. Consistent with the authority conferred under 51 U.S.C. Chapter 509 to the DOT and to the FAA by delegation, the FAA reviews all payloads to be launched or reentered under an FAA license to ensure that the launch or reentry of the proposed payload will not jeopardize public health and safety, safety of property, U.S. national security or foreign policy interests, or international obligations of the United States. In this context, hosted payloads are space-bound items included on a launch vehicle, reentry vehicle, or payload that use available power, mass, or space of the primary payload or launch/reentry vehicle, and that may be owned by a party other than the primary payload owner or launch/reentry vehicle operator. Subpart D of parts 415 and 431 detail the information that an applicant must provide to enable the FAA to render a payload determination in accordance with §§ 415.59 and 431.57, respectively. These information requirements include details such as the payload's physical dimensions and weight, ownership or operation, orbital parameters, intended operations, and the identification and quantification of any hazardous or radioactive materials. Each of these requirements helps the FAA, and its Federal partners who review the payload during interagency consultation, to assess the effect of launching or reentering the proposed payload in accordance with § 50904(c). Inherent to this assessment is a complete unde…

Fonte: Federal Register (federalregister.gov). Texto original em inglês. Conteúdo sanitizado por segurança.