Title 14

SECTION 420.23

420.23 Launch site location review - flight corridor.

§ 420.23 Launch site location review - flight corridor.

(a) Guided orbital expendable launch vehicle. For a guided orbital expendable launch vehicle, an applicant shall define a flight corridor that:

(1) Encompasses an area that the applicant estimates, in accordance with the requirements of this part, to contain debris with a ballistic coefficient of ≥3 pounds per square foot, from any non-nominal flight of a guided orbital expendable launch vehicle from the launch point to a point 5000 nm downrange, or where the IIP leaves the surface of the Earth, whichever is shorter;

(2) Includes an overflight exclusion zone where the public risk criteria of 1 × 10−4 would be exceeded if one person were present in the open; and

(3) Uses one of the methodologies provided in appendix A or B of this part.

(b) Guided sub-orbital expendable launch vehicle. For a guided sub-orbital expendable launch vehicle, an applicant shall define a flight corridor that:

(1) Encompasses an area that the applicant estimates, in accordance with the requirements of this part, to contain debris with a ballistic coefficient of ≥3 pounds per square foot, from any non-nominal flight of a guided sub-orbital expendable launch vehicle from the launch point to impact with the earth's surface;

(2) Includes an impact dispersion area for the launch vehicle's last stage;

(3) Includes an overflight exclusion zone where the public risk criteria of 1 × 10−4 would be exceeded if one person were present in the open; and

(4) Uses one of the methodologies provided in appendix A or B to this part.

(c) Unguided sub-orbital expendable launch vehicle. (1) For an unguided sub-orbital expendable launch vehicle, an applicant shall define the following using the methodology provided by appendix D of this part:

(i) Impact dispersion areas that the applicant estimates, in accordance with the requirements of this part, to contain the impact of launch vehicle stages from nominal flight of an unguided sub-orbital expendable launch vehicle from the launch point to impact with the earth's surface; and

(ii) An overflight exclusion zone where the public risk criteria of 1 × 10−4 would be exceeded if one person were present in the open.

(2) An applicant shall base its analysis on an unguided suborbital launch vehicle whose final launch vehicle stage apogee represents the intended use of the launch point.

(d) Reusable launch vehicle. For a reusable launch vehicle, an applicant shall define a flight corridor that contains the hazardous debris from nominal and non-nominal flight of a reusable launch vehicle. The applicant must provide a clear and convincing demonstration of the validity of its flight corridor.

[Docket No. FAA-1999-5833, 65 FR 62861, Oct. 19, 2000, as amended by Docket No. FAA-2014-0418, Amdt. No. 420-7, 81 FR 47026, July 20, 2016; Doc. No. FAA-2016-6761, Amdt. No. 420-8, 83 FR 28535, June 20, 2018]

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