Washington, D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation is pleased to announce that Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne has joined the Federation as an Associate Member. With 3,100 employees across Florida, California, Alabama, and Mississippi, including more than 1,800 employees in Southern California, the company is a leading provider of propulsion and power systems for space flight.

James G. Maser, President of Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, stated, “Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne is excited to be a part of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. Joining the Commercial Spaceflight Federation will enable us to better collaborate with industry to serve both NASA’s new technology and exploration programs and the expanding commercial space market.”

Maser continued, “We believe our proven expertise in rocket engine development, human-rating requirements and propulsion system verification will help contribute to the growth of commercial spaceflight. Since our beginnings in the late 1940s, our company has been at the forefront of the commercial spaceflight industry with a number of private engine developments for commercial launch vehicles, and we are excited to participate in the further growth of this vital sector.”

Maser added, “Clearly, we support the continuation of the U.S. human spaceflight program, as well as fostering a safe, more cost-effective and commercial approach for crew to Low Earth Orbit. Participation with CSF demonstrates our determination to maintain the country’s aerospace technology base with proven commercial capabilities to transport crew to Low Earth Orbit while NASA moves on a course for exploration missions beyond Low Earth Orbit. We are especially pleased to see NASA’s desire to make new investments in liquid propulsion and fundamental propulsion research.”

Mark Sirangelo, Chairman of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, commented, “On behalf of the member companies of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, we are proud to welcome Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne.  Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne is respected throughout the industry for its high-performance propulsion systems and the company will be a strong asset to the Commercial Spaceflight Federation.  We’re excited to have them onboard.”

Bretton Alexander, President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, added, “It’s very gratifying to see the aerospace industry continue to unite behind a common goal of expanding the commercial space economy.  The payoff will be thousands of new high-tech jobs, enhanced access to space for civil, military, and commercial customers, and exciting a new generation of young people to embark on science and technology careers.  We are pleased to welcome the entire Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne team.”

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering.  For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director John Gedmark at john@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202-349-1121.

About Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne

Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, a part of Pratt & Whitney, is a preferred provider of high-value propulsion, power, energy and innovative system solutions used in a wide variety of government and commercial applications, including the main engines for the space shuttle, Atlas and Delta launch vehicles, missile defense systems and advanced hypersonic engines. For more information on Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, please visit www.prattwhitneyrocketdyne.com or contact Bryan Kidder at 818-586-2213.

Adding new voices to the debate over NASA’s future, Senator Rockefeller (D-W.V.), Senator Warner (D-Virginia), and Senator Brownback (R-Kansas) attended today’s Senate Commerce Committee hearing and registered supportive comments concerning the commercial space industry.

Senator Rockefeller (Committee Chairman) stated, “The American people deserve the most from their space program. NASA’s role cannot stay static. The President has challenged the United States Government to seek greater international collaboration, enable commercial services and develop new exploration technologies leading to human expansion beyond low-Earth orbit. These are good priorities and should help ensure that in tough fiscal times, we build our space future in a measured, relevant, innovative, and sustainable way. This is not easy to do but we can do it – and we must. NASA cannot continue down the same path.”

Senator Brownback stated, “I am a strong supporter of NASA, as I mentioned, and of the commercial space industry … With the impending retirement of the Shuttle, NASA is now assuming a much different role than in our past space effort, and I think there is great opportunity to have a space program that leads the world but will be a space program that is firmly embedded in opportunity for all. By opening up commercial space, it ensures a strong future for the US and the competitive aerospace industry.”

Senator Warner stated, “I do think there’s interesting opportunities to leverage off of things like the X PRIZE Foundation and the kind of energy that that generated in this sector … I think it [commercialization] holds some great possibilities and opportunities, particularly possibilities for Wallops as a facility in the commonwealth of Virginia.” (Wallops is a spaceport located in Virginia’s eastern shore.)

Senators Rockefeller, Brownback, and Warner’s statements join other voices from both political parties including New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (D), Newt Gingrich (R), and Norm Mineta (who served under both the Clinton and Bush administrations) in support of commercial spaceflight in Low Earth Orbit, as proposed by President Obama in his new plan for NASA.

The webcast of the hearing can be viewed at the following URL. Brownback’s comments begin 47:10 into the video, and Warner’s at 120:20. http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=Hearings&ContentRecord_id=54f5c39e-f62c-487f-b9ed-fd4be38d096f

Rockefeller’s statement is available online at http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=c7e0dd7e-f059-4aca-80f4-87cc94e5506b

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation
The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director John Gedmark at john@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121.

Norman Mineta, who served as Secretary of Transportation under President George W. Bush and as Secretary of Commerce under President Bill Clinton, and who represented Silicon Valley in Congress for more than 20 years, has published an op-ed stating, “With Russia, China and India close on our heels, the only way we can maintain our hard-won leadership in space transportation is by employing America’s unique entrepreneurial strength. Obama’s new plan for NASA does exactly that.”

Mineta’s op-ed in Silicon Valley’s San Jose Mercury-News, titled “Time to Bring Silicon Valley Spirit to Space Industry,” can be read at http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_14929987 .

Mineta, a longtime Silicon Valley leader both in Congress and as mayor of San Jose, stated, “As President Barack Obama outlined in a historic speech last week, NASA will now partner with commercial space companies to bring that Silicon Valley spirit to all of NASA and breathe new life into the space industry.” Mineta added, “When I was secretary of transportation, I had final authority for more than 40 FAA-licensed commercial rocket launches. Safety is something I take very seriously, and I would not be advocating for expanded commercial space flight if I didn’t believe it would be safe.”

A bipartisan figure, Mineta became only the fourth person to be a member of Cabinet under two Presidents from different political parties when he became Secretary of Transportation for President Bush after being Secretary of Commerce for President Clinton.

In the op-ed, Mineta stated, “While the Atlas and Delta rockets have extensive track records, it is not just the established companies that will compete in this new industry. Having spent two decades representing Silicon Valley in Congress, I say it’s long overdue to bring in entrepreneurs to this sector, with all their fresh ideas, private investment and new business approaches.”

The President’s new plan has also been endorsed by other public figures such as New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, former Congressman Newt Gingrich, and James Cameron, who served on the NASA Advisory Council from 2003 to 2005. Newspaper editorial board endorsements of the new NASA plan include The New York Times, Boston Globe, The Economist, Nature, Philadelphia Inquirer, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Tampa Tribune, and the Chicago Tribune.

Washington, D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation, the association of companies working to make commercial human spaceflight a reality, to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and to inspire young people to pursue careers in science and engineering, strongly endorsed President Obama’s space vision today. The President’s plan increases NASA’s budget by $6 billion over 5 years and includes new investments in exploration to Mars and other destinations, new technologies, and commercial spaceflight. The President stated, “I am 100 percent committed to the mission of NASA and its future,” and added, “We will work with a growing array of private companies competing to make getting to space easier and more affordable.”

Please see below statements from members of the space community:

· Mark Sirangelo, Chairman of Sierra Nevada Corporation Space Systems and Chair of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation: “The President’s plan will create thousands of new jobs starting almost immediately, and the commercial space industry is eager to do our part to hire the experienced workers in Florida and elsewhere who are being transitioned from the retiring Space Shuttle. And in the years to come, the President’s plan will create new industries and markets that will generate even more jobs at an accelerating rate, just like the historical growth of early aviation or the Internet.”

· Eric Anderson, CEO of Space Adventures: “This visionary plan is a master stroke. It’s exactly what NASA needs in order to continue to lead the world in space exploration in the 21st century.”

· Frank DiBello, CEO of Space Florida: “The future of space travel, along with the investment, innovation and jobs that go with it, lies in the innovations of the commercial sector… Together, NASA and private companies can ensure our nation remains first in space.”

· Elon Musk, CEO and CTO of SpaceX: “Handing over Earth orbit transport to American commercial companies, overseen of course by NASA and the FAA, will free up the NASA resources necessary to develop interplanetary transport technologies. This is critically important if we are to reach Mars, the next giant leap in human exploration of the Universe… For the first time since Apollo, our country will have a plan for space exploration that inspires and excites all who look to the stars.”

· Bretton Alexander, President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation: “The President’s message today was spot-on: the new plan means more jobs, more spacecraft, more new technologies, and more astronaut flights. In fact, a recent independent study by the Tauri Group found that NASA investment in new commercial spaceflight programs will create an average of 11,800 direct jobs per year over the next five years, and that figure does not even include the investments in other NASA programs like technology and heavy-lift.” [For details on the jobs study, please visit http://www.commercialspaceflight.org/?p=1186]

· Bill Nye the Science Guy, Vice President of the Planetary Society: “People don’t realize that NASA’s budget has been increased, not decreased. The President is proposing that we let the maturing commercial space industry take over the routine jobs, while making more money available to explore other worlds. It couldn’t be more exciting.”

The President’s new plan has also been endorsed by other well-known public figures such as New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, former Congressmen Newt Gingrich and Bob Walker, and James Cameron, who served on the NASA Advisory Council from 2003-2005. (Please see http://www.commercialspaceflight.org/?p=1144 for additional endorsements.)

Previously, NASA had already invested $50 million in five commercial space companies — Boeing, United Launch Alliance (ULA), Paragon Space Development Corporation, Blue Origin, and Sierra Nevada Corporation – to demonstrate hardware milestones on the path to commercial human spaceflight as part of the CCDev (Commercial Crew Development) program, as well as an additional $500 million in SpaceX and Orbital Sciences through the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program.

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation
The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director John Gedmark at john@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121.
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Washington, D.C. – Newly released results from The Tauri Group, an independent, analytic consulting firm based in Alexandria, Virginia, reveal that the new NASA Commercial Crew and Cargo Program funding in the President’s FY2011 Budget Request will result in an average of 11,800 direct jobs per year over the next five years, nationwide. The Tauri Group study was commissioned by the Commercial Spaceflight Federation for an objective estimate of jobs resulting from NASA’s proposed spending of $5.8 billion on Commercial Crew and an additional $312 million on Commercial Cargo from FY2011 to FY2015. Details of the study can be found on the Tauri Group website at www.taurigroup.com.

Bretton Alexander, President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, stated, “The Tauri Group’s analysis indicates a peak of 14,200 direct jobs in FY2012 will result from the design and development of capsules to take astronauts to and from the International Space Station, ‘human rating’ of rockets, upgrades to launch infrastructure at Cape Canaveral, launch vehicle manufacturing, and demonstration launches during the development phase.”

The Tauri Group study used a government economic impact model developed by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and provides average job figures resulting from the assessment of over 50 possible program competition outcomes. The job figures considered only the proposed new NASA funding of $6.1 billion under the Commercial Crew and Commercial Cargo budget lines, so the job figures do not include additional private investment above the NASA funding. Additionally, jobs created by operational flights of commercial crew vehicles following their development were not included in this study, nor were activities funded under the existing Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program funding of $500 million and the follow-on operational cargo flights to the International Space Station under the $3.5 billion Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) program. Indirect and induced jobs in the communities surrounding these activities were also not included, with only direct jobs being counted.

The Tauri Group study results can be downloaded from the Tauri Group website at http://taurigroup.com/graphics/snapshots/DERPCCCEPBR.pdf .

About The Tauri Group
The Tauri Group is an innovator in analytical consulting, applying creative, responsive problem-solving to homeland security, defense, and space enterprises. Government agencies and multinational contractors trust The Tauri Group’s objectivity and vision. They know The Tauri Group brings the leading minds in homeland security, technology, aerospace, arms control, public health, and more to tackle issues with no easy answers. The company is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia. For more information on the Tauri Group study, please visit www.taurigroup.com or contact lead analyst Paul Guthrie at The Tauri Group at 571-303-2165 or paul.guthrie@taurigroup.com, or managing partner Carissa Christensen at 703-647-8079.

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation
The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director John Gedmark at john@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121.

In the three weeks since President Obama’s plan for NASA was released on February 1st, a bipartisan group including governors, former legislators, astronauts, and former NASA senior managers has endorsed the new NASA plan, which has also been endorsed by over half a dozen editorial boards:

Op-eds:
• Gov. Bill Richardson, “Commercial Spaceflight: Creating 21st Century Jobs,” Huffington Post, 2/23
• Newt Gingrich & Bob Walker, “Obama’s Brave Reboot for NASA,” Washington Times, 2/12
• James Cameron, “The Right Way Forward on Space Exploration,” Washington Post, 2/5
• Esther Dyson, “Prepare for Liftoff,” Foreign Policy, 2/8
• Buzz Aldrin, “President Obama’s JFK Moment,” Huffington Post, 2/3
• Scott Hubbard, “A Better Way to Go Where No One Has Gone Before,” San Francisco Chronicle, 2/24
• Peter Diamandis, “The Case for Private Space,” Wall Street Journal, 2/13

Editorials:
• Editorial board, Boston Globe, “While NASA Needs to Evolve, the Universe Still Beckons,” 2/15
• Editorial board, The Economist, “NASA’s New Mission: Space to Thrive,” 2/3
• Editorial board, Nature, “Divide and Conquer,” 2/11
• Editorial board, New York Times, “A New Space Program,” 2/8
• Editorial board, Philadelphia Inquirer, Worthy Enterprise,” 2/9
• Editorial board, Chicago Tribune, “President Obama Boldly Goes on A Different Course in Exploration,” 2/9
• Editorial board, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, “NASA’s Relaunch: Obama’s Budget Brings Change for the Better,” 2/6

Note: inclusion of an op-ed or editorial in this list does not imply an endorsement of its entire content by the Commercial Spaceflight Federation.

Hailing President Obama’s new plan for NASA, Governor Bill Richardson (D-New Mexico) published an op-ed today praising the President’s plan for “creating thousands of new high-tech jobs and helping America retain its leadership role in science and technology.”

In a piece titled “Commercial Spaceflight: Creating 21st Century Jobs” in the Huffington Post, Governor Richardson states, “I am pleased that President Obama and NASA chief Charlie Bolden have decided to promote commercial spaceflight — let’s get to work building this growing industry! The Wright Brothers would be proud.” The article can be found at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gov-bill-richardson/commercial-spaceflight-cr_b_473509.html

In the op-ed, Richardson also states, “The excitement of commercial spaceflight is already inspiring kids to pursue careers in science and technology, something our nation desperately needs to remain competitive with emerging powers like China.”

“In New Mexico, our support for commercial spaceflight is already reaping benefits,” adds Richardson. “About 500 New Mexicans are now on the job, creating the first commercial spaceport in the world. Another 300 new jobs are expected this year. The spaceport is fulfilling its promise of inspiring young people to study math and science and developing our statewide economy. … The demand is there, and New Mexico will get its return on investment. Americans will get their return on investment, too.”

Image credit: State of New Mexico

Washington, D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation enthusiastically welcomes NASA’s announcement today that NASA will fund dozens of science and education payloads to fly on commercial suborbital vehicles built by companies including Armadillo Aerospace, Blue Origin, Masten Space Systems, Virgin Galactic, and XCOR Aerospace.  At the first annual Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference, NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver announced in her keynote speech today that President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2011 budget request for NASA commits $75 million in funding over five years for the new Commercial Reusable Suborbital Research program (CRuSR). 

“We are thrilled to see NASA recognizing the enormous potential of new commercial vehicles for science, research, and education,” said Mark Sirangelo, Chairman of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation.  “NASA Deputy Administrator Garver’s announcement today means that hundreds of scientists, educators, and students will be able to fly payloads on these new commercial vehicles.”

“For the first time ever, NASA has put forward a commitment to dramatically expand the number of research and education payloads that fly into space,” said Dr. S. Alan Stern, chair of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s Suborbital Applications Researchers Group (SARG) and former NASA associate administrator for science.   “Since this new generation of commercial vehicles are low cost, NASA’s $75 million will open the floodgates for everyone from astronomers to high school classrooms to conduct real science in space.  This will be one of the best investments NASA has ever made.”

“For everyone who has dreamed of participating in the grand adventure of spaceflight, this $75 million commitment marks the dawn of a new space age,” added Stern.  “As the commercial space industry continues to grow, I expect that we will see increasing numbers of payloads and people flying to space.”

“I am pleased to see NASA’s recognition of the transformative potential of these new commercial vehicles,” stated Dr. Fred Tarantino, President and CEO of the Universities Space Research Association.  “The space science community is thrilled to see such a commitment to low-cost, reusable, and frequent access to space that will provide hands-on experience for students and change the way many space scientists operate.”

NASA is proposing to spend $15 million in each of five years from 2011-2015 for the CRuSR program, funds that will both go to universities and other research institutions to build science and education payloads, as well as being used to purchase flights on commercial suborbital vehicles.  The CRuSR program is based at NASA’s Ames Research Center in the heart of Silicon Valley.

The Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference, a first-of-its-kind forum for bringing together scientists, educators, and vehicle developers to discuss potential research and education uses for commercial spacecraft, is being held in Boulder, Colorado and is co-organized by the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), the Universities Space Research Association (USRA), and the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF).

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry.  CSF member organizations include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, and spaceports.  The Commercial Spaceflight Federation is governed by a board of directors, composed of the member companies’ CEO-level officers and entrepreneurs. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director John Gedmark at john@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121.

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Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and former House Science and Technology Committee Chairman Robert S. Walker have published an op-ed stating, “The Obama administration’s budget for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration deserves strong approval from Republicans. The 2011 spending plan for the space agency does what is obvious to anyone who cares about man’s future in space and what presidential commissions have been recommending for nearly a decade.”

Their op-ed in The Washington Times, titled “Obama’s Brave Reboot for NASA,” can be read at http://washingtontimes.com/news/2010/feb/12/obamas-brave-reboot-for-nasa/

In the op-ed, Gingrich and Walker state, “Bipartisan cooperation has been difficult to achieve in Congress, but here is a chance. By looking forward, NASA has given us a way to move forward. It deserves broad support for daring to challenge the status quo.”

Gingrich, who is on the board of governors of the National Space Society, and Walker, who was chairman of the Commission on the Future of the United States Aerospace Industry, add, “In the same way the railroads opened the American West, commercial access can open vast new opportunities in space.” They state that commercial spaceflight “has the potential of creating thousands of new jobs, largely the kind of high-tech work to which our nation should aspire.”

James Cameron, the writer and director of “Avatar” and “Titanic” who served on the NASA Advisory Council from 2003 to 2005, has published an op-ed in The Washington Post endorsing commercial human spaceflight and President Obama’s new plan for NASA. The op-ed, titled “The right way forward on space exploration,” can be read at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/04/AR2010020402439.html?hpid=opinionsbox1

In the op-ed, Cameron states, “By selecting commercial solutions for transportation to the international space station, NASA is empowering American free enterprise to do what it does best: develop technology quickly and efficiently in a competitive environment.”

Cameron concludes the op-ed stating, “I applaud President Obama’s bold decision for NASA to focus on building a space exploration program that can drive innovation and provide inspiration for the world. This is the path that can make our dreams in space a reality.”