PART 401—ORGANIZATION AND DEFINITIONS Authority: 51 U.S.C. 50101-50923. Source: Docket No. 43810, 53 FR 11013, Apr. 4, 1988, unless otherwise noted. § 401.1 The Office of Commercial Space Transportation. The Office of Commercial Space Transportation, referred to in these regulations as the “Office,” is a line of business within the Federal Aviation Administration and is located in the Federal Aviation Administration Headquarters, 800 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 331, Washington, DC 20591. [Amdt. 401-3, 68 FR 35289, June 13, 2003] § 401.3 The Associate Administrator for Commercial Space Transportation. The Office is headed by an Associate Administrator to exercise the Secretary's authority to license or permit and otherwise regulate commercial space transportation and to discharge the Secretary's responsibility to encourage, facilitate, and promote commercial space transportation by the United States private sector. [Doc. No. FAA-2006-24197, 72 FR 17016, Apr. 6, 2007] § 401.5 [Reserved] § 401.7 Definitions. For the purposes of this chapter unless otherwise excepted, the following definitions apply: Act Anomaly Associate Administrator Casualty Casualty area Command control system Contingency abort Countdown Crew Critical asset Critical payload (1) Is so costly or unique that it cannot be readily replaced; or (2) The time frame for its replacement would adversely affect the national interests of the United States. Crossrange Deorbit Disposal Downrange Effective casualty area Equivalent level of safety Expected casualty Expendable launch vehicle Experimental permit permit Explosive debris Federal launch or reentry site Flight abort Flight abort rules Flight crew Flight hazard area Flight safety limit Flight safety system Government astronaut (1) Is designated by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration under Title 51, United States Code, Section 20113(n); (2) Is carried within a launch vehicle or reentry vehicle in the course of their employment, which may include performance of activities directly relating to the launch, reentry, or other operation of the launch vehicle or reentry vehicle; and (3) Is either— (i) An employee of the United States Government, including the uniformed services, engaged in the performance of a Federal function under authority of law or an Executive act; or (ii) An international partner astronaut. Hazard control Hazardous debris Hazardous materials Instantaneous impact point International partner astronaut International Space Station Intergovernmental Agreement Key flight safety event Launch Launch operator Launch or reentry system Launch site Launch vehicle Launch window Liftoff Limits of a useful mission Mishap (1) A fatality or serious injury (as defined in 49 CFR 830.2); (2) A malfunction of a safety-critical system; (3) A failure of the licensee's or permittee's safety organization, safety operations, safety procedures; (4) High risk, as determined by the FAA, of causing a serious or fatal injury to any space flight participant, crew, government astronaut, or member of the public; (5) Substantial damage, as determined by the FAA, to property not associated with licensed or permitted activity; (6) Unplanned substantial damage, as determined by the FAA, to property associated with licensed or permitted activity; (7) Unplanned permanent loss of a launch or reentry vehicle during licensed activity or permitted activity; (8) The impact of hazardous debris outside the planned landing site or designated hazard area; or (9) Failure to complete a launch or reentry as planned as reported in § 450.213(b). Neighboring operations personnel Nominal Normal flight Normal trajectory Operating environment Operation hazard Operation of a launch site Operation of a reentry site Operator Orbital insertion Payload Person Physical containment Physical electronic storage Pilot Populated area (1) An outdoor location, structure, or cluster of structures that may be occupied by people; (2) Sections of roadways and waterways that are frequented by automobile and boat traffic; or (3) Agricultural lands, if routinely occupied by field workers. Probability of casualty Public Reenter; reentry Reentry operator Reentry site Reentry vehicle Reentry window Remote operator (1) Has the ability to control, in real time, a launch or reentry vehicle's flight path; and (2) Is not on board the controlled vehicle. Reusable launch vehicle (RLV) Risk Safety critical Service life Sigma Software function Space flight participant State and United States Suborbital rocket Suborbital trajectory Sub-vehicle point System hazard Tether system Toxic hazard area Uncontrolled area Unguided suborbital launch vehicle United States citizen (1) Any individual who is a citizen of the United States; (2) Any corporation, partnership, joint venture, association, or other entity organized or existing under the laws of the United States or any State; and (3) Any corporation, partnership, joint venture, association, or other entity which is organized or exists under the laws of a foreign nation, if the controlling interest in such entity is held by an individual or entity described in paragraph (1) or (2) of this definition. Controlling interest means ownership of an amount of equity in such entity sufficient to direct management of the entity or to void transactions entered into by management. Ownership of at least fifty-one percent of the equity in an entity by persons described in paragraph (1) or (2) of this definition creates a rebuttable presumption that such interest is controlling. Uprange Useful mission Validation Verification Wind weighting safety system Window closure [Doc. No. FAA-2019-0229, Amdt. 401-9, 85 FR 79707, Dec. 10, 2020; Doc. No. FAA-2023-1656, Amdt. No. 401-10, 89 FR 76726, Sept. 19, 2024]