Space Tourism

The idea of space tourism came about in the latter half of the 20^th century.  Since the development of the rocket engine powerful enough to overcome the force of Earth’s gravitational pull to reach orbital speeds that could open space to human exploration only a few have done it. The few that have seen Outer Space are those that were rich and famous. In 1984 President Ronald Reagan signed the Commercial Space Launch Act (Space and Technology, 2009-2011).  This Act required that any person who wanted to launch a commercial rocket be licensed.  In 2004 President George W Bush signed the Commercial Space Launch Amendments Act (CSLAA), which specified parameters for commercial human space travel (Encyclopedia Britannica). In 2010 President Barack Obama signed The NASA Authorization Act of 2010, which authorized NASA to set a new course for American human spaceflight (GEOData Policy, 2010).

The Space tourism industry has evolved into a topic of interest to many around the world.  This is evident in that Virgin Galactic sold over 300 seats at $200,000 each for it’s suborbital space tourism flights that are scheduled to begin in 2015 (Seedhouse, 2014).

Two major hurdles that has been an issue in the commercial space travel industry are regulations safety.  In the beginning the FAA had a difficult time regulating how individual companies design their spacecraft’s.  They also had problems effectively measuring the safety of the participants being launched into space. One accomplishment of the space tourism industry would be the flight that Dennis Tito took to the space station Mir. The launch and return of SpaceShipOne, which became the first privately owned manned spacecraft to visit outer space (Smithsonian National). 

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations that currently controls commercial space exploration requires that the spacecraft operators provide safety-related information and identify what an operator must do to carry out a licensed space flight with a human on board. Furthermore, the spacecraft operators must inform passengers of the risks involved in space travel as well as the risks of space travel in the operator’s spacecraft. The FAA also requires that each participant be trained.  As in air travel participants must undergo general security requirements for space flight. The Federal Aviation Administration has also established requirements for crew notification, medical qualifications and training, as well as requirements governing environmental control and life support systems. They also require that the spacecraft operator verify the combined functioning of the vehicle’s hardware and the software in an operational setting as well as a test flight verification before any space flight participant can get on board.

The space exploration regulations were established in 2004 under the Commercial Space Launch Amendments Act (FAA, 2007). These rules were developed because commercial space exploration is a growing field of interest and the FAA’s has an ongoing commitment to public safety as well as ensuring that people make educated decisions when it comes to their personal safety

I think the current regulations for commercial space exploration are appropriate.  The restriction that they have are enough, if more restriction are added at this stage of commercial space exploration may never be because of the restriction which would make it hard or maybe impossible for operators to comply with.   As we become more familiar with space travel I think that the rules and regulation should evolve.   

I believe in the next 15 year commercial space travel will be something that everyone can participate in.  I think I will evolve like commercial air travel, which is now another normal way to travel. I don’t think that commercial space travel will ever be a one-time bucket list adventure because there are too many people interested in seeing what beyond Earth’s blue sky.  I can see years down the line humans trying to populate other planets because we have the ability to travel outside of Earths atmosphere.   

According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration the basic requirements to be considered for an Astronaut Pilot position are: Candidates must have a Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution in either engineering, biological science, physical science, or mathematics. Candidate must have three years of experience or a graduate degree, which can be substituted for less then the minimum required experience time.  For example a Masters degree is equivalent to one year of experience, while a Doctoral degree is equivalent to three years of experience.  Candidates that have teaching experience with student in K-12 are also considered to have qualifying experience. Candidates must have at least 1,000 hours of flight time as pilot-in-command in a jet aircraft. Candidates must be able to pass a NASA space physical, which is comparable to a military or civilian flight physical that includes having distant visual acuity: 20/100 or better uncorrected, correctable to 20/20 each eye (NASA).  Blood pressure in a seated position may not exceed 140/90 when measured. Last be not least candidates must be between 5 feet 2 inches and 6 feet 3inches due to the confined quarters within the spacecraft. 

Encyclopedia Britannica. (n.d.). Commercial Space Launch Amendments Act | United States [2004]. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/topic/Commercial-Space-Launch-Amendments

Erik Seedhouse. ( 2014, October 31). Space tourism. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/topic/space-tourism#ref1117971

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). (2007, February 7). New Regulations Govern Private Human Space Flight Requirements for Crew and Space Flight Participants. Retrieved from http://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/ast/human_space_flight_reqs/

GEOData Policy. (2010, September 30). NASA Authorization Act of 2010. Retrieved from https://geodatapolicy.wordpress.com/2010/10/01/nasa-authorization-act-of-2010/

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (n.d.). Astronaut Selection and Training. Retrieved from http://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/pdf/606877main_FS-2011-11-057-JSC-astro_trng.pdf

Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. (n.d.). SpaceShipOne. Retrieved from http://airandspace.si.edu/collections/artifact.cfm?object=nasm_A20050459000  

Space and Technology Policy Group. (2009-2011). Space Law. Retrieved from http://www.spacepolicyonline.com/space-law

Pilots and Depressions

On March 24, 2015 a Germanwings(Lufthansa regional carrier) flight en route to Düsseldorf from Barcelona crashed into the French Alps. Andreas Lubitz a 28-year-old German co-pilot, for the Germanwings, intentionally crashed flight 4U9525 in the French Alps after locking Captain Patrick Sondenheimer out of the cockpit.

Andreas Lubitz mental health condition was documented.   Prior to receiving his pilot’s certification he had a long-standing history of mental illness.  During his initial training with Lufthansa Lubitz took several months off due to his mental health condition, he later underwent psychotherapy for 18 months for a severe depression episode.    At some point in time questions should have been asked about his lengthy periods of time off from work. 

In addition to the Germanwings accident, another accident that was caused by a pilots mental condition was on February 9, 1982 Japan Air Lines (JAL) flight 350 with service to Tokyo, Japan from Fukuoka, Japan.  The Flight crashed on approach at Haneda airport in Tokyo, Japan.   Flight 350 was operated on a Douglas DC-8 -61 jet; Captain Seiji Katagiri’s 35-year old crashed the plane into the ocean deliberately.  Captain Katagiri engaged the two inboard engines thrust reversers while pushing the throttles to idle causing the aircraft to lose altitude quickly.  This was his attempt to commit suicide and to take the 182 people on board with him.  First Officer Yoshifumi Ishikawa and the flight engineer Yoshimi Ozaki attempted to restrain the captain Katagiri as they pleaded with him to stop.  The aircraft landed in the water short of the runway killing 24 people.  In this case Japan Air Lines knew that Captain Seiji Katagiri had suffered from a psychosomatic disorder in the 1980 but allowed him to work because he was declared fit for duty. 

In the United States, the Federal Aviation Administration requires that all pilots pass a medical exam every 12 calendar months if younger than 40 and every six calendar months if 40 or older to keep flying certificates current. The testing consists of a basic psychological assessment, which contains a questionnaire inquiring about any depression episodes or suicidal thoughts.  The mental health assessment is completed with the doctor’s concluding that the pilot can hold a conversation.  So if the pilot never divulges this information about their mental health and the aviation doctor never picks up on any cues then the pilot’s mental health state will go undetected.  

The current method of assessing a pilot mental health state is clearly not sufficient. There needs to be some type of change to allows for better detection of a pilots mental health state. The FAA deems withholding any information about their health a federal offence and any that is found to be withholding any information may have to pay fine of $250,000.  But this just does not seem to be a enough to deter pilot from falsifying documents.  I think that pilot should have to go through formal psychological test with a mental health/ behavioral specialist to ensure they do not have any mental health issues. I think when it come to mental health in the aviation industry there should be more done than just a questionnaire, which is clearly not a sufficient way to determine if a pilot is " fit to fly" because the pilot may not being telling the whole truth about his/ her mental medical history.  The pilot's yearly medical exam should be a two-part exam given by FAA approved MD or DO and a FAA approved mental health/ Behavioral specialist

If the FAA and air carries took the liberal approach allowed individual with known mental health conditions to work in the industry, as pilot would be crazy.  Allowing a person with some form of a mental illness to become a pilot spells out crazy. This seems like a disaster waiting to happen because does anyone really know what cause a particular mental illness, what are the triggers for that illness and does treatment really work?  None of these questions can be answered with 100% certainty.   Now what happens if the person’s trigger is stress and they are under a lot of pressure while operating an aircraft at work?  Million of people die.

Daily Briefing. (2015, March 27). It's usually pilots looking at pilots': The state of aviation's mental health evaluations.  advisory.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015.  

Holpuch, A. (2015, March 26). Pilots' mental health screening under scrutiny after Germanwings crash. theguardian.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015. 

Spector, D. (2015, March 26). Here’s a timeline of exactly what happened inside the Germanwings plane before it crashed. businessinsider.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015.

Stokes, H. (1982, February 14). Cockpit Flight Reported on Jet That Crashed in Tokyo. nytimes.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015.

Personal Introduction

My name is Keisha Harris; I'm a second bachelor degree student enrolled in Eastern Michigan University's Aviation Flight Technology program.  This is my second year in the program and I should be graduating some time this year. I will have all of my classes completed by this spring but my official graduation date depends on how fast I can finish all of my flight courses.  I am currently working on my private pilot certification with the hope of finishing up in the next few months. 

I have always had an interest in aviation. As a child I was fascinated by the whole idea of flight and how the airplane stays airborne.  I remember that I wanted to attend Davis Aerospace Technical High School but was too afraid to tell my parents I wanted to go there. Once I became a flight attendant and I think this is what gave me to the courage to pursue this career.

My future plans are to become an airline pilot.  Initially I would like to flight instruct to build up my hours.   Then I would like to fly for a corporate company.  Then eventually would love to fly for Delta.