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News and Updates – Leading the World and Beyond in Commercial Space Transportation

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Le Bourget, France Before an aerospace industry Commercial Space Panel at the Paris Air Show today, Acting Federal Aviation Administration(FAA) Administrator Daniel K. Elwell told participants that the Department of Transportation is building a regulatory framework to retain United States leadership and enable the limitless potential and possibilities of commercial space.

We look forward to working with commercial space innovators and within agencies throughout the Administration to maintain American competitiveness and safety in this critical industry, said Elwell.

Elwell credited much of the success of the United States in commercial space transportation to the administrations approach to make sure regulatory requirements do not hamstring industry. Recently, the FAA put forward a proposed rulemaking to streamline and get rid of rules that have outlived their usefulness, are duplicative, or unnecessarily burdensome. Two more rulemakings are being prepared to improve how FAA oversees spaceports and provide better access and interaction with commercial space and air traffic operations.

The Acting Administrator reasserted that safety remains the agencys primary mission and has led to a record, that to date, has resulted in no public injuries or fatalities in the more than 370 FAA-licensed commercial space activities.

Elwell cited ever-increasing launch activity as evidence in the vibrancy and growth of the commercial space sector:

  • 23 successful launches in 2017;
  • 33 successful launches in 2018, a new record; and,
  • As many as 41 launches are on the calendar for this year.

The Acting Administrator also highlighted recent milestones and success:

  • In December and February Virgin Galactic successfully completed two more crewed commercial launches going above 50 statute miles, adding five new Commercial Space Astronauts to the rolls, including the first woman, Beth Moses;
  • SpaceX and Boeing plan to carry astronauts to the Space Station on FAA-licensed launches in the near future;
  • In April, America and world saw the first commercial payload launched by SpaceXs Falcon Heavy Rocket; and,
  • Earlier this month, the FAA supported three commercial launches within three days (Rocket Lab in New Zealand, Blue Origin in Texas, and SpaceX in Florida).

News and Updates – FAA Hiring Controllers Nationwide

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A window of opportunity is available to U.S. citizens interested in becoming air traffic controllers. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is accepting applications nationwide from June 14-17. The job announcement may close prior to the 17th if the number of applications exceeds the FAAs needs.

Applicants must be U.S. citizens, speak English clearly and be no older than 30 years of age (with limited exceptions). They must have a combination of three years of higher education and/or work experience. They are also required to pass a medical examination, security investigation and FAA air traffic pre-employment tests. Agency staffing needs will determine facility assignments, and applicants must be willing to work anywhere in the U.S.

Accepted applicants will be trained at the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City, Okla.

Active duty military members must provide documentation certifying that they expect to be discharged or released from active duty under honorable conditions no later than 120 days after the date the documentation is signed.

Interested applicants should visitwww.usajobs.govto build their applications orwww.faa.gov/Jobsfor more information about air traffic controllers.

News and Updates – U.S. Department of Transportation Announces $840 Million in Infrastructure Grants to 381 Airports in 47 States

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The 432 grants will fund infrastructure projects at 381 airports around the country.

News and Updates – FAA Breaks Ground for New Air Traffic Tower at GSO

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The U.S. Department of Transportations Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) held a groundbreaking ceremony today for a new Air Traffic Control Tower and Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) at Piedmont Triad International Airport (GSO) in Greensboro, N.C. The agency will invest $61 million in the new facility.

This investment in infrastructure and technology will place the airport in an excellent position for future growth, said Michael OHarra, Regional Administrator of the FAAs Southern Region. The new facility will enable air traffic controllers to provide the safest and most efficient service to Piedmont Triad area travelers for decades to come.

It has been 45 years since the current Air Traffic Control Tower was put into service, said Steve Showfety, Chairman of the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority. Today we are turning a page. This new tower will give us the modern infrastructure we need to live up to the vision of our master plan and will allow the Piedmont Triad International Airport to continue to add new passenger service, serve our current tenants and also add new tenants who will bring investment and jobs to the community.

The new control tower will be 180 feet tall, topped by a 550-square-foot tower cab to accommodate up to eight positions for air traffic controllers. The 15,650-square-foot base building will anchor the new tower and will house the Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) with up to 10 radar positions for air traffic controllers. The TRACON controls airspace within a 60-mile radius of the airport, which includes 20 general aviation airports. It will be equipped with the latest technology for communications and navigation.

Construction began in April 2019, and the FAA expects to commission the facility in 2022. Total cost is $61 million: $41 million for construction and $20 million for equipment and installation, cabling, telecommunications, and construction of a new communications transmitter/receiver. The cost of demolition of the existing facility and disposal of the equipment also is included in the total.

North Carolina is the only state where the FAA is building two new air traffic control facilities. The FAA will commission the new 370-foot-tall tower at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in summer 2020.

The GSO tower will allow air traffic controllers to manage flights safely and efficiently at North Carolinas third busiest airport. Greensboro Tower controlled 85,700 flights and the TRACON handled 150,000 radar operations in the 12 months ending on April 30, 2019.

A total of 46 FAA employees work at Greensboro Tower 31 in Air Traffic and 15 Technical Operations employees who install and maintain 266 facilities at Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Burlington and Martinsville, Va., airports.

The FAA awarded the construction contract to Archer Western Construction, LLC, of Chicago, Ill., in October 2018. The new facility will replace the existing 90-foot-tall tower that has been in operation since 1974.

News and Updates – FAA Issues Waiver to Fly Drones With Parachutes

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The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced today that it issued Hensel Phelps Construction Company of Washington, D.C., a Part 107 waiver on June 1 to operate a DJI Phantom 4 drone, equipped with a parachute, over people.

A waiver is required to operate a drone contrary to the rules in part 107, which is the small unmanned aircraft rule.

The FAA did not certify or approve the parachute that will be used; however, the FAA determined that the waiver application sufficiently met the standard design specification (ASTM 3322-18) and that the proposed small Unmanned Aircraft System (sUAS) operation could be safely conducted under the terms and conditions of a waiver.

Thiswaiver represents the first time the FAA has collaborated with industry in developing a publically available standard, worked with an applicant to ensure the testing and data collected acceptably met the standard, and issued a waiver using an industry standard as a basis to determine that a proposed sUAS operation can be safely conducted under the terms and conditions of a waiver under Part 107.

This process is scalable and available to other applicants who propose to use the same drone and parachute combination. The FAA will require each applicant to provide the testing, documentation, and statement of compliance listed in ASTM3322-18 in their applications using the same drone and parachute combination.