I seem to find myself writing a lot on space stuff and here we go again…

What’s the story today?

The FAA just released a new SAFO on ‘Space Stuff’. It is officially called ‘Airspace Management Considerations for Space Launch Activities’.

Here it is for you to click on and read:

Click to access SAFO26001.pdf

It is quite uninformative though. It basically just says the following:

1. It’s up to you to look out for warnings about Space Stuff and plan accordingly;
2. That means looking out for NOTAMs on TFRs, AHAs and DRAs;
3. DRAs (debris response areas) won’t be provided for non-radar/oceanic airspace;
4. Debris might not be limited to the DRA anyway;
5. If there is a “debris-generating mishap” (their phrase not mine) then ATC will alert aircraft that might be impacted so they can stay out of its way.

That was not very interesting…

…Which is why I have decided to add to the article’s excitement status by talking about space stations too.

Now, you might be thinking “why would that be relevant to me, a mere earthling of a pilot?” Well, let me tell you why:

The ISS is closed. Or it will be soon anyway. And this means two things for us:

1. At some point they will bring it back to Earth (we probably want to stay out of the way for that bit)
2. Other space stations are going to be launched soon (more TFRs, AHAs and whatever other acronym they use).

All of this means the FAA’s SAFO (because the vast majority of Space Stuff is launched or handled by the USA) is actually quite important to know about.

The ISS is coming home

The International Space Station which, fun fact, only weighs 450,000kg (less than an A380 at MTOW (575,000kg) and about the same as the Statue of Liberty) is being decommissioned.

This is planned for 2030, with a controlled de-orbit booked in for early 2031. They are planning for it to head to Point Nemo which is basically the point on Earth furthest from any actual land and thus has the minutest chance of hitting people.

Point Nemo, in case you want to find it on the map, is located at 48°52.6’ S / 123°23.6’ W and is filled with a fair few de-orbited bits of debris.

Despite the ‘controlled’ part of the plan, come 2031 you can still expect some NOTAMs about this to ensure aircraft are not anywhere near areas it will “fall” through.

There are currently no airways around that region.

The new ones I mentioned

There are some people eyeing those real estate spots up in space, and the first one due to launch is Vast’s Haven-1 station. They will launch it up there atop a SpaceX Falcon 9.

The second set to launch in 2026 is Sierra Space’s ‘Dream Chaser’. Silly name.

Anyway, Haven-1 is set to launch in May 2026 with SpaceX, presumably from the KMCO/Orlando (Kennedy Space Centre) area, so look out for NOTAMs related to that if you are flying anywhere near the Florida metroplex region.

Sierra Space’s ‘spaceplane’ (called Tenacity which is even sillier) is also launching from Cape Canaveral later in 2026.

The important bits

I’ve for sure mentioned these before but the issue with ‘Space Stuff’ for us low lying aviation folk is that they tend to a) result in closures of bits of airspace we need, and b) the closures tend to be fairly broad because launch windows and debris falling back to Earth windows tend to be slightly unpredictable.

The biggest issue with Space Stuff though is the uncontrolled space debris. Several high profile incidents have been reported in the last few years, highlighting the growing risk because of the amount of debris present and the difficulty of tracking these and their route to Earth.

So for now, following the guidance provided in the FAA SAFO is actually quite important. And that’s why I shared it with y’all.