Interesting aspect of regulation

Under www.marssociety.de an article is mentioning an interesting aspect of regulation today - while the aspect mentioned does not be regulation really but providing fundaments for doing something merely that are required indeed.

The article mentions that without a clear frame of conditions investors considere innovations like suborbital space travel to be too risky because it is unknown what the government might do or not do. Once the frame exist this information is provided by the frame sufficiently.

The questions to be answered are listed to be

Who is responsible to certify suborbital vehicles?
Who supervises the flights of suborbital vehicles?
What are the levels of safety and qualification required regarding the crew?
What are the medical requirements passengers must fit into?
Who is to what amount reliable for damages?
What must be included into insurance contracts for operators and passengers?
What are the environmental requirements to be fulfilled?

What about this look at it?



Dipl.-Volkswirt (bdvb) Augustin (Political Economist)

I don't see where the rules should be vastly different from those of Sky Diving operations.

There are already sufficient regulations covering exotic fuel handling and insurance.

Most of your issues are addressed in the United States by the FAA and other Federal agencies. The FAA also licenses pilots, and establishes health requirements for those planning to fly into space. I suspect the EU and others have similar regulations in place. While the paperwork may sometimes be burdensome, the requirements are well known in the industry.

Quoting from an FAA document http://www.faa.gov/data_statistics/aviation/aerospace_forecasts/2008-2025/media/Commercial%20Space%20Transportation.pdf

Operations in the United States also get to have the AST and sometimes the NOAA on your case.