10 Potential Spaceports Included In Initial Membership
Announcement
The Commercial Spaceflight Federation announced the creation
and initial membership of the Spaceports Council Monday. The
council is made up of spaceports worldwide who seek to cooperate on
issues of common interest such as airspace access, legal and
regulatory frameworks, infrastructure, international policy
migration, liability, and voluntary common operating standards.
The Spaceports Council, which will operate under the aegis of
the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF), was officially created
following the conclusion of the second CSF Spaceports Executive
Summit held on October 20, 2009 in Las Cruces, New Mexico to
coincide with the International Symposium for Personal and
Commercial Spaceflight. This summit built on the success of an
earlier CSF spaceports summit held on May 27, 2009, hosted by Space
Florida as part of the International Space Development Conference
in Orlando, Florida.
Initial member spaceports and spaceport principals of the CSF
Spaceports Council include:
- Spaceport America, represented by Executive Director Steve
Landeene (Chairman)
- Aeroports de Catalunya, represented by Executive Director Jordi
Candela
- Cecil Field Spaceport, represented by Administrator of Planning
and Development Todd Lindner
- Mojave Air and Space Port, represented by General Manager
Stuart Witt
- Oklahoma Spaceport, represented by Executive Director Bill
Khourie
- Space Florida, represented by President Frank DiBello
- Spaceport Indiana, represented by President Brian Tanner
- Spaceport Scotland, represented by Chairman Howie Firth
- Spaceport Sweden, represented by Vice President Bengt
Jaegtnes
- Wisconsin Aerospace Authority, represented by Chairman Tom
Crabb
Steve Landeene, Executive Director of Spaceport America, has
been selected as the first chair of the CSF Spaceports Council.
Landeene stated, "I am deeply honored and humbled to take up the
first chairmanship of the Spaceports Council. Collecting and
sharing the knowledge and experience base of spaceports worldwide
will be beneficial to us all as commercial space vehicles begin to
push the envelope toward more and more flights. And when working
with policymakers, spaceports will benefit by formulating and
presenting common positions."
The Spaceports Council will convene regular meetings of
spaceports principals, as well as coordinate additional cooperation
between spaceports on the staff level, in order to address common
problems affecting spaceports, work toward voluntary uniform
standards for development of common use equipment and operational
procedures, and advise vehicle operators, developers, and other
members of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, on issues of
concern to the spaceport community.
Bretton Alexander, President of the Commercial Spaceflight
Federation, stated, "The formation of the Spaceports Council marks
another milestone in the growth of the commercial spaceflight
industry. By deepening the cooperation among both domestic and
international spaceports in this new industry, we can help ensure
that the industry continues to grow and flourish. Congratulations
to Steve Landeene on his selection as the first chairman of this
group, as well as all the spaceports that have chosen to form the
initial membership of the Council."
Stuart O. Witt, General Manager of Mojave Air and Space Port and
an Officer of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, added, "We are
excited to welcome this great group of spaceports, both domestic
and international, as we join together to share our lessons
learned. As we look toward a new generation of suborbital and
orbital launch vehicles, I know that a strong spaceport network,
armed with the latest in operational 'lessons learned,' will be
critical."