Referenews

An FAA spokesman said that for a Starlink satellite launch last year, SpaceX didn’t submit an analysis about collision-related probabilities in orbit prior to the flight, as required by the agency. The agency ultimately obtained that data, he said. 

A spokesman for Space Exploration Technologies Corp., the company’s formal name, didn’t respond to requests for comment. The company has 30 days to respond to the FAA after receiving its enforcement letter and can contest the proposed penalty, according to the agency. 

The company has said previously that it is committed to safe practices across its operations, which include launching payloads and crew members on its fleet of rockets and deploying thousands of Starlink satellites to orbits near Earth. 

“SpaceX has demonstrated this commitment to space safety through action, investing significant resources to ensure that all our launch vehicles, spacecraft, and satellites meet or exceed space safety regulations and best practices,” the company said in a statement posted to its website last year. 

The FAA licenses commercial space launches and re-entries. Officials from the agency and space industry have been discussing ways to better integrate a growing number of rocket launches—including from sites in Florida, Virginia and California—into aviation corridors that also are used by the commercial airline industry. 

Congress recently provided the FAA’s commercial space office with additional funding, said Kelvin Coleman, the associate administrator overseeing that division, speaking at a conference last week.

“Our job and really intention is to keep pace with the increased demands for the products and services that we provide for the industry,” he said. 

Write to Micah Maidenberg at micah.maidenberg@wsj.com