Heavy Launchers Won't Trigger New Regulatory Approaches, FAA Says

The coming generation of larger launch vehicles doesn't raise different regulatory approval issues from existing rockets because the new rockets have to meet the same public safety requirements, the FAA emailed Monday, confirming what satellite and launch experts said (see 1708180008). The agency said proposed launch vehicles might have "unique" hazards such as larger propellant loads or flying back multiple boosters to land at the same time, but it will treat these vehicles "just like existing vehicles." The FAA said it will identify each new launch vehicle’s hazards and require launch operators to mitigate these hazards. It also said the size of launch vehicles isn't what drives the need for new regulatory review techniques.