Featured Address Privatization of Space Flight Operations

Abstract

The establishment of United Space Alliance (USA) as the single prime contractor for NASA’s Space Shuttle operations is a significant step toward the privatization of America’s human space flight activities. the Space Flight Operations Contract that NASA and USA signed in 1996 transfers responsibility for management and operations to the private sector, advancing the Space Shuttle program from an inherently governmental function toward a commercial enterprise. the contract does not specifically provide for the privatization of the Shuttle program, but it does place accountability under a single contractor. the next step is the transfer of total operational responsibility for the program to USA, a move that, from an industry perspective, would constitute privatization. the ability of industry to establish a commercial market for human space flight operations and to generate revenue from other non-NASA customers will be the determining factor in the program’s progress beyond privatization toward commercialization. Reducing the cost of flying payloads aboard the Space Shuttle while ensuring safe reliable delivery will be key in attracting other agencies and new commercial customers in this market. Market share will naturally be limited to those orbits serviceable by the Shuttle, and the assembly of the International Space Station will place a significant demand on the manifest for the foreseeable future. Beyond these limitations, however, the Space Shuttle has considerable commercial capability on the “continuum” between a privatized government function and a truly commercial enterprise.