Elon Musk’s SpaceX Violated Its Launch License in Explosive Starship Test, Leading to an FAA Probe

  • AUTHOR: dua
  • POSTED ON: January 30, 2021

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has found itself
in trouble yet again because of the launch license as well as the Federal
Aviation Administration test license.


The
first high-altitude test flight of its Starship rocket that was launched in
December but exploded in a poor landing attempt has now violated the terms and
conditions of Federal Aviation Administration test license.


Apparently,
the violation of landing explosion and license violation has led to an official
investigation by the FAA. This will unfortunately draw more scrutiny on Elon
Musk’s Mars rocket test campaign.


In
December, “Serial Number 8” starship prototype was launched in Boco Chica,
Texas, facilities. This launch was considered a success by Musk as he had
excitedly tweeted: “Mars, here we come!!”


However,
nobody is happy when Elon Musk is doing his space experiments. The FAA
apparently didn’t show any interest in sharing happiness or even extend a
congratulations.


And
this slight mishap triggered an investigation that week and emphasized not only
on the explosive landing but also on SpaceX’s refusal to follow the conditions
applied by the FAA authorization. However, it seems to be unclear so as to
which aspect of the test flight ended up violating the FAA license.


“The FAA will continue to work with SpaceX to
evaluate additional information provided by the company as part of its
application to modify its launch license. While we recognize the importance of
moving quickly to foster growth and innovation in commercial space, the FAA
will not compromise its responsibility to protect public safety. We will
approve the modification only after we are satisfied that SpaceX has taken the
necessary steps to comply with regulatory requirements.”
– said FAA spokesman Steve Kulm on Friday.


The
criticism and scrutiny started after the launchpad spectacle as is essayed a
critical role in holding up SpaceX’s latest “SN9” starship prototype. It is
beind reported that the steel alloy and 16-story-tall rocked was loaded with
fuel and was ready to make the move, however, the FAA officials were not yet
done with their license review process. In addition, SpaceX had also made
changes to their license application.


Of
course, all of this is quite frustrating. Musk took to Twitter to explain the
ongoing debate.


He
tweeted: “Unlike its aircraft division,
which is fine, the FAA space division has a fundamentally broken regulatory
structure. Their rules are meant for a handful of expendable launches per year
from a few government facilities. Under those rules, humanity will never get to
Mars.”


Hence,
the license violation has now increased the problems between the two
transportation agencies. It’s not the first time that

Musk has bemoaned US’s
old regulatory frameworks. On the other hand, the US Department of
Transportation – responsible for delegating oversight duties to FAA – had
revealed a new set of guidelines and license procuring requirements last year.
It’s another story that that framework is still not effective. 


Meanwhile,
Musk is not happy and continued to tweet to his 44 million followers about the
delusions the regulators live in. He spoke about their attitude towards
business and development.


In
fact, you must know that SpaceX had sued Air Force twice already. The first
time, it happened in 2014 – when it was fighting for its right to compete in
the Pentagon Lunches – and the second time it sued the Air Force, it was in
2018 – when it lost out on a competitive development fund for starship and other
rockets.


In
2018, things got really out of hand because Elon Musk got a $20 million by the
Securities and Exchange Commission for misleading the Tesla investors (proven
wrong). Musk spoke to 60 minutes regarding this controversy and said: “I do not respect the SEC. I do not respect
them.”


Do
you think Elon Musk and SpaceX can stay out of trouble for one day?


Do
let us know in the comment section below and don’t forget to like our page on
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What do you think about the
violated SpaceX’s launch license?

Updated January 30, 2021
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