HUNTSVILLE, Ala., - Huntsville International Airport (HSV) has been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to allow commercial space vehicles to land in Huntsville. Huntsville International Airport, located in North Alabama, is the first commercial airport in the U.S. approved as a reentry site to receive a space vehicle landing, AviationPros reports. Continue reading original article.
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
17 May 2022 - “Huntsville has propelled us into another historic first for our state with the award of the commercial space vehicle reentry license for Huntsville International Airport,” said Gov. Kay Ivey. “We appreciate the collaboration exhibited by our public and private partners to make this a reality.”
Landing the Dream Chaser in Huntsville was identified as one of three pillars of the commercial space strategy developed in 2016 for the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber. The chamber has been working to build a commercial market for low Earth orbit using the Dream Chaser as the cornerstone. Efforts include sponsoring two competitions with the European Space Agency, hosting three workshops for industry and academic partners, hosting a panel discussion on research and development in microgravity at South by Southwest (SXSW), exhibiting at the National Space Symposium and Space Tech Expo Europe, and several media stories including a national profile on Fox and Friends.
The reentry license application was submitted by Huntsville International Airport in November 2021, and approval was contingent upon the finding of no significant impact through the FAA’s Environmental Assessment. The public was invited to participate in the assessment, which examined air space, noise, historical preservation, wildlife and impact to waterways within the anticipated reentry trajectory of the vehicle.
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Jamie Whitney, Associate Editor
Intelligent Aerospace
