The FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) is a branch of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) responsible for regulating and promoting the U.S. commercial space transportation industry. AST licenses private sector launches of space payloads on expendable launch vehicles and commercial space launch facilities. It also sets insurance requirements and ensures compliance with U.S. domestic and foreign policy. Key activities include licensing launches and reentries, regulating launch site operations, and working to integrate commercial space operations into the National Airspace System.
All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.
The FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation received $24,949,000 in fiscal year 2019 and the administration requested $25,598,000 for fiscal year 2020.
A separate minibus appropriations bill that includes transportation funding provides $26,040,000 for the Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation.
FAA Administrator Stephen Dickson formally approved the reorganization of the Office of Commercial Space Transportation on the night before 2019-12-03.
The Federal Aviation Administration approved a reorganization of the Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) to improve efficiency amid growing launch activity.
The 2019-10-31 minibus also included the transportation, housing and urban development bill that funds the Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation.
The spending bill includes $26,040,000 for the FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation, compared to an administration request of $25,598,000 and $24,949,000 provided in the House’s version of the spending bill.
The 2019-08-27 flight was delayed by issues amending SpaceX’s experimental permit issued by the Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation.
The FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation has experienced a tenfold increase in workload since 2012.
The FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation received more than 100 public comments during the current rulemaking process.
As of 2019-08-15, the FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation had received just over 20 substantive comments in the rulemaking process.
The Federal Aviation Administration intends to complete a reorganization focused on efficiency in its Office of Commercial Space Transportation before seeking significant additional personnel.
Since 2012, the FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation has increased staffing by 40 percent.
The FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation licenses U.S. commercial launches and reentries, including reusable Falcon 9 first stages and Dragon capsules operated by SpaceX.
The FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation intends to complete its reorganization by the end of the year.
The Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) formally announced on 2019-07-22 that it was extending the public comment deadline for a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to streamline commercial launch and reentry regulations from 2019-07-30 to 2019-08-19.
The House bill provides $24,949,000 for the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation, the same amount as in the final fiscal year 2019 appropriations bill.
The White House fiscal year 2020 budget request sought nearly $25,600,000 for the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation.
The Government Accountability Office recommended in a 2019-05-23 report that the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation better manage its workforce needs, including producing long-term projections of staffing requirements.
An FAA authorization bill enacted in October 2019 authorized $33,038,000 for the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation for fiscal year 2020.
The FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation was not issuing new licenses or modifying existing licenses during the shutdown but was supporting commercial launches under existing licenses.