On September 18, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced plans to fine SpaceX more than $630,000 for failing to comply with relevant regulations during two launches last year.In response, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk responded quickly, threatening to file a countersuit and accusing the FAA of "regulatory overreach."
On Tuesday, local time in the United States, FAA chief legal counsel Marc Nichols issued a formal statement via email, saying: "The FAA's core principle is to ensure safety, including the strict supervision of companies holding commercial space launch operating licenses in accordance with the law. Any company that fails to comply with safety requirements will face severe legal consequences."
The FAA pointed out that two of SpaceX's violations involved launch missions of the PSNSATRIA project. The mission was performed at the Cape Canaveral Space Launch Center in Florida on June 18, 2023. SpaceX used a Falcon 9 rocket to successfully put the Indonesian communications satellite into orbit.
According to the FAA statement, in May last year, SpaceX submitted a request to modify the communications plan in its launch license. The request included two recommendations: adding a new launch control room and eliminating the detailed two-hour readiness survey before launch.
However, SpaceX has already implemented these changes on the PSNSATRIA mission prior to official FAA approval. The FAA therefore decided to fine SpaceX $175,000 each for unauthorized adjustments to the launch process, totaling $350,000.
On July 28 of the same year, SpaceX once again attracted the attention of the FAA. The company used a Falcon Heavy rocket to launch the Jupiter 3 telecommunications satellite from NASA's Kennedy Space Center adjacent to Cape Canaveral.
To complete this launch, SpaceX used the new propellant facility at the Kennedy Space Center for the first time, but according to the FAA, the facility had not yet been approved at the time of the mission. Although SpaceX submitted the relevant application earlier, it was not approved before launch.
As a result, the FAA is proposing to fine SpaceX $283,009 for its unauthorized use of unapproved facilities during the Jupiter 3 launch, bringing the total fine to $630,000.
After the FAA's two enforcement notices are issued, SpaceX has 30 days to respond. SpaceX has the option of holding an informal meeting with the FAA's legal team or submitting relevant materials for review in response.
SpaceX founder and CEO Musk quickly responded to reports of the FAA’s proposed fine via social platforms: “SpaceX will file a lawsuit against the FAA for regulatory overreach!” But he did not disclose more details.
SpaceX’s dissatisfaction with the FAA and its regulatory framework is no secret and is frequently expressed publicly. For example, SpaceX published a lengthy blog post last week harshly criticizing the current regulatory environment for the space launch industry.
SpaceX wrote in the article: "Unfortunately, we are still stuck in a frustrating reality: the time required for government approval for rocket launches far exceeds the cycle of designing and manufacturing space hardware. This status quo is not only unreasonable, but also directly threatens the United States' leadership in space exploration."
The core of the article focuses on the starship project that SpaceX is fully promoting, which aims to send humans and materials to the moon and Mars. SpaceX said that since early August, the team has been preparing for the fifth test flight of the Starship, but the FAA is still reviewing the pre-launch configuration and mission details.
The FAA has previously stated that this review may not be completed until the end of November, which means that the next test flight of the Starship will be postponed until the end of the year.