Space Entrepreneurs Fight For Their Lives…

…against federal regulations, AP reports.

Space entrepreneurs say they believe they are on the brink of developing a vibrant tourism industry, but worry that government regulation may stifle it before it can take off.

To prevent that, they have formed a group, the Industry Consensus Standards Organization, to set standards for space fliers.

"If government regulates safety aspects of space fliers themselves, it would be tantamount to killing the industry," a group member, Michael Kelly, said at a hearing Wednesday of the House Infrastructure and Transportation's subcommittee on aviation.
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He predicted the safety standards set by space entrepreneurs for rocket ships will work as well as the Underwriters Laboratories' stamp of approval on electrical devices.
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A law signed by President Bush in December requires that the government license launches of privately built spacecraft. It also says the Federal Aviation Administration may not issue safety regulations for passengers and crew for eight years unless specific design features or operating practices result in a serious or fatal injury.

Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., objects to that approach, which he said amounts to a "tombstone mentality." Oberstar has introduced a bill requiring that the FAA include in its licenses minimum safety and health standards for spacecraft passengers and crew.

The FAA seems to have the right attitude for now, though:

FAA chief Marion Blakey agreed that government oversight of commercial space enterprises -- "astropreneurs," she calls them -- must evolve along with the industry.

"It was more than 20 years after the Wright brothers' first flight before government regulations concerning aviation were put into place," Blakey told the subcommittee, noting that modern airlines began with barnstorming aviators.

[Link thanks to Franklin Harris.]