MIXING US AND DUTCH APPROACHES: TOWARDS CURA?AO'S LEGISLATION ON PRIVATE COMMERCIAL SPACEFLIGHT

摘要

One of the more advanced projects tooffer private commercial spaceflightsconcerns Cura?ao, the Dutch island inthe Caribbean, from where SpaceExpedition Cura?ao (SXC) aims tostart launching such flights withvehicles to be developed by XCOR asof 2014. Not only is the island still partof the Kingdom of the Netherlands,albeit as an autonomous 'Land' as ofrecently, SXC still is a companyregistered in the Netherlands, too. Onthe other hand, XCOR, which is goingto wet lease its vehicles to SXC, is aUS company, and its operationsconsequently will - to the extentapplicable - (also) be licensed by theUS Federal Aviation Administration(FAA).Cura?ao is currently in the process ofdeveloping appropriate frameworklegislation for the purpose, in orderinter alia to appropriately implementthe relevant international legalobligations as well as protectapplicable public interests in thisspecific context. Moreover, for theabove reasons such legislation willlikely mix the Dutch and USapproaches to licensing, authorisingand monitoring the commercialspaceflights at issue.The present paper analyses in somedetail the various international, US andDutch legal interests interacting in thiscontext, and how Cura?ao legislationwould best guard all those interestswhile not unnecessarily burdeningSXC and/or XCOR with administrativeor other obstacles to a safe andpotentially profitable businessoperation.