More Than Just Tourism in the Commercial Space Industry

As we know, the Commercial Space industry is growing. NASA has been launching supplies to the ISS via commercial operators. Companies are testing space tourism transports and entrepreneurs all over the world are trying their hand in finding a way to make money from a place very few people have ever gone.

The large growth we have seen recently is in part due to the commercialization of space becoming more manageable and attainable. New technologies and knowledge are being put to the test to get people into space and operating before other competitors can do the same. This privatization of commercial space can be a good thing. It removes costs from governments and their agencies. NASA has been a large promoter in the private sector of space. With the retirement of the STS, American Astronauts have been dependent on Russia for a ride to the space station. That trip for one astronaut is currently priced at $70 million (Martin, 2014).  NASA has also payed over $7 billion in contracts to Boeing and SpaceX who are currently developing new launch systems to get American astronauts into space within the next few years. In regards to the outsourcing of developing a launch system, it's a first for NASA. They certainly still have insight into the production, but their branding isn't going to be the one stamped on the side of the finished product. 

In addition to the large sum of money spent on contracts for a new launch system a very large amount of money has been spent on commercial space cargo transportation. As President Obama pledged in 2010, we (NASA) are now working with a large group of commercial space operators making space travel cheaper and more efficient. Currently NASA has more than a few contracts with cargo operators to transport goods to the ISS. A few of those operators are, but are not limited to, Orbital ATK of Dulles, Virginia; Sierra Nevada Corporation of Sparks, Nevada and SpaceX of Hawthorne, California (NASA Awards, 2016). Those companies have transported more than 35,000 lbs. of cargo to the space station.

The space industry has many more opportunities than just cargo and travel. Many companies and entrepreneurs are seeing asteroids as perfect mining sources. Some asteroids can hold valuable materials ranging in worth from $100 billion to others pushing $100 trillion (Thompson, 2016). The asteroid mining portion of the space industry would be worth trillions of dollars alone if and when it gets started. Gathering materials from asteroids is an endeavor much closer to us than one might imagine. Even though completely mining an asteroid for its resources may be a few decades down the road, we can still obtain materials and resources from them.  There is the possibility of using water found on asteroids to make fuel in space, instead of transporting it up from earth which will save much more fuel and money (Wall, 2015).

With the space industry growing all over the world, every country will have to work together to keep not only a peaceful relationship, but a friendly one. This is a lesser known subject, but a large one indeed. When and while the commercial space industry is growing larger than it is now, what policies will we adopt to keep the industry fair and safe? Will a free enterprise system work? Many of the policies here on Earth will now work in space. Many companies in any industry will cut back on certain costs because they are not seen as important costs when in reality, those cutbacks hurt employees in one way or another. That will simply not work in space (Livingston, 1999). Space should be the New Frontier. In that sense we should also explore it in a new way. Creating the safest possible environment and all working together to move mankind forward would be a good thing to remember.  

References

Livingston, D. M. (1999, August 14). The Ethical Commercialization of Outer Space. In Space Future. Retrieved from http://www.spacefuture.com/archive/the_ethical_commercialization_of_outer_space.shtml

Martin, K. (2014, December 2). The business of space: Exploring the new commercial space economy. In Aljazeera America. Retrieved from http://america.aljazeera.com/watch/shows/real-money-with-alivelshi/articles/2014/12/2/the-business-of-spaceexploringthenewcommercialspaceeconomy.html

NASA Awards International Space Station Cargo Transport Contracts (2016, January 14). In NASA. Retrieved from http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-awards-international-space-station-cargo-transport-contracts

Thompson, C. (2016, January 14). Space Mining Could Set Off a Star War. In Wired. Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2016/01/clive-thompson-11/

Wall, M. (2015, August 11). Asteroid Mining May Be a Reality by 2025. In Space.com. Retrieved from http://www.space.com/30213-asteroid-mining-planetary-resources-2025.html

NTSB and their Most Wanted Changes to Aviation

Every year brings a new list of the NTSB's most wanted. These most wanted are the changes to the transportation industry that they have deemed most important at the time. The list of 5 consists of cockpit image recorders, preventing loss of control in flight, fatigue related accidents, reducing distractions and medical fitness.

I believe that preventing loss of control should be the first priority on the most wanted list. The NTSB says that between 2001 and 2011 over 40 % of general aviation fixed wing fatal accidents occurred because of the pilots' lost of control (Prevent Loss of Control, NTSB). This is very common with pilots failing to see an oncoming spin or stall while in IMC. Presently, pilots will need a bi-annual flight review to keep their certificate current. Having only one check or flight every two years is not nearly enough practice to keep any sort of skilled honed to the level needed, especially with flying. There should be some changes made, calling for more required flight time or more training throughout the two years to keep flying skills and knowledge up to date.

Fatigue related accidents are of no surprise to the aviation community. Fatigue has been a heavy issue with aviation for quite some time and there have been improvements made, but not nearly as much as should be required from the industry. Over 42% of U.S. drivers have admitted to falling asleep at the wheel at least one time in their lifetime (Reduce Fatigue-Related Accidents, NTSB). Fatigue is common in all industries, especially in the U.S. where citizens work the most hours per week over other industrialized countries. Recently there have been regulations passed allowing more rest time for flight crews, but those regulations do not adhere to all working pilots in the industry. It also doesn't account for crew members not following fixed sleep schedules and the possibility of sleeping in a new environment every trip.

The third item on the most wanted list should be the reduction of distracting devices. PEDs are becoming more permanently fixed in our lives and we can never seem to get away from them. People driving and operating in the transportation industry need to realize that those little devices take our minds too far off of the situation at hand and cause us to become a danger to everybody around.

Fourth on the list should be medical fitness. The aviation industry has a strict medical screening for pilots which will be hard to add even more screening to. Certainly, some diseases and medical issues will be very hard if not impossible to detect at times, but those are rare cases. By producing an even more difficult medical examination process which will possibly not yield many results all while possibly restricting pilots who are fit to fly is not what the industry needs.

Lastly, cockpit image recorders should not be implemented into cockpits. With FDRs and CVRs pilots are already being heavily monitored during their time on duty. Having an image recording device always watching over you as well can become very stressful. To me, that creates the sensation of my boss always staring over my shoulder which will lead to a higher stress levels and a stronger possibility of mistakes being made. The use of FDRs and CVRs can already give us a clear view of what was going on in the cockpit. Is adding thousands of image recording devices to aircraft to always be glaring at our pilots a very good idea? I believe that to be a worse distraction than PEDs by the fact that you will always have the thought of somebody watching you through that camera on top of the company, your coworkers, the FAA and the rest of the industry.

One thing that should be added to the list is environmental and technology changes. Right now, the aviation industry will have to wait years or even decades for new technologies to be implemented. By the time they are moved into the industry, those technologies are obsolete. We need to find a way to remove or aid in shortening the time to approve technologies that do work and removing those that do not. It is time for aviation to be a leader in technology instead of always following close behind.

References

Prevent Loss of Control in Flight in General Aviation. (n.d.). In National Transportation Safety Board. Retrieved April 7, 2016, from http://www.ntsb.gov/safety/mwl/Pages/mwl7_2015.aspx

Reduce Fatigue-Related Accidents. (n.d.). In National Transportation Safety Board. Retrieved April 7, 2016, from http://www.ntsb.gov/safety/mwl/Pages/mwl1-2016.aspx

Aviation Organizations

There are many aviation organizations out there. Many of these organizations are well known for taking a strong stance on their beliefs of what aviation should be. They cover the industry from general aviation all of the way to the airline pilots and beyond. Aviation organizations focus on informing there members of current events and protecting them in the advent of needing protection.

One organization I plan on joining is AOPA (Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association). They focus on growing and supporting general aviation in all ways they can. They believe that the right to fly should belong to everyone and AOPA fights to give everyone an opportunity to access it (Mission and History, 2016).  AOPA was incorporated on May 15, 1939 and have been promoting and improving general aviation for pilots and the industry ever since. Since general aviation brought me to where I am at today, I would prefer to give back what I can and help others find their way in the field.

Another leader in the aviation industry would be the Air Line Pilots Association. ALPA focuses on leading in safety and protecting airline pilots (What We Do, 2016). Their focus is to promote the health and welfare of all members before any governmental body.  They have negotiated hundreds of contracts with federal agencies and will continued that for a long time into the future. ALPA has a large member community coming in at over 52,000 pilots and 30+ airlines (What We Do, 2016).

These organizations want to improve the industry they are a part of. Not only safety, but organizational structures and knowledge of the industry. There are roughly 600,000 certified pilots in the U.S. and AOPA's U.S. member count in 2012 was around 375,000. Certainly, not all of those members are certified pilots, but that goes to show that there are a lot of people who care about the general aviation community and believe AOPA can help make a difference. Both ALPA and AOPA will continue to change and move to change the industry as how the people working and living in it need. I want to be a part of an organization that will help protect me by driving for the highest in safety and development of piloting skill and decision making.

References

AOPA, . (2012, April). IAOPA Statistical Report. Retrieved from http://www.iaopa.org/what-is-general-aviation/statistics/2012-iaopa-stats.pdf

Mission and History of AOPA (n.d.). In AOPA. Retrieved from http://www.aopa.org/About-AOPA/Governance/Mission-and-History-of-AOPA

What We Do (n.d.). In Air Line Pilots Association, International. Retrieved April 2, 2016, from http://www.alpa.org/about-alpa/what-we-do