President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to ease regulations for commercial spaceflights.
“Inefficient permitting processes discourage investment and innovation, limiting the ability of US companies to lead in global space markets,” the White House said.
The order instructs the transportation secretary to “eliminate outdated, redundant, or overly restrictive rules for launch and re-entry vehicles.” It also calls for the evaluation of whether or not states are slowing spaceport infrastructure development and mandates a more streamlined process for authorising novel space activities.
The order is also thought to be aimed at enabling a more competitive launch marketplace, to increase both commercial space launch cadence and novel space activities by 2030
“With these actions, it is clear that President Trump is serious about maintaining US dominance in space in the face of growing international competition, especially from China,” said Dave Cavossa, president of the Commercial Space Federation.
Elon Musk, who has previously criticised regulatory barriers as hindrances for space operations, stands to gain the most from Trump’s executive order via SpaceX (SPACE), which is the leading private space company.