Regulations last checked for updates: Nov 23, 2024

Title 14 - Aeronautics and Space last revised: Nov 21, 2024
§ 415.109 - Launch description.

An applicant's safety review document must contain the following information:

(a) Launch site description. An applicant must identify the proposed launch site and include the following:

(1) Boundaries of the launch site;

(2) Launch point location, including latitude and longitude;

(3) Identity of any launch site operator of that proposed site; and

(4) Identification of any facilities at the launch site that will be used for launch processing and flight.

(b) Launch vehicle description. An applicant must provide the following:

(1) A written description of the launch vehicle. The description must include a table specifying the type and quantities of all hazardous materials on the launch vehicle and must include propellants, explosives, and toxic materials; and

(2) A drawing of the launch vehicle that identifies:

(i) Each stage, including strap-on motors;

(ii) Physical dimensions and weight;

(iii) Location of all safety critical systems, including any flight termination hardware, tracking aids, or telemetry systems;

(iv) Location of all major launch vehicle control systems, propulsion systems, pressure vessels, and any other hardware that contains potential hazardous energy or hazardous material; and

(v) For an unguided suborbital launch vehicle, the location of the rocket's center of pressure in relation to its center of gravity for the entire flight profile.

(c) Payload description. An applicant must include or reference documentation previously filed with the FAA that contains the payload information required by § 415.59 for any payload or class of payload.

(d) Trajectory. An applicant must provide two drawings depicting trajectory information. An applicant must file additional trajectory information as part of the flight safety analysis data required by § 415.115.

(1) One drawing must depict the proposed nominal flight profile with downrange depicted on the abscissa and altitude depicted on the ordinate axis. The nominal flight profile must be labeled to show each planned staging event and its time after liftoff from launch through orbital insertion or final impact; and

(2) The second drawing must depict instantaneous impact point ground traces for each of the nominal trajectory, the three-sigma left lateral trajectory and the three-sigma right lateral trajectory determined under § 417.207 of this chapter. The trajectories must be depicted on a latitude/longitude grid, and the grid must include the outlines of any continents and islands.

(e) Staging events. An applicant must provide a table of nominal and ±three-sigma times for each major staging event and must describe each event, including the predicted impact point and dispersion of each spent stage.

(f) Vehicle performance graphs. An applicant must provide graphs of the nominal and ±three-sigma values as a function of time after liftoff for the following launch vehicle performance parameters: thrust, altitude, velocity, instantaneous impact point arc-range measured from the launch point, and present position arc-range measured from the launch point.

source: Amdt. 415-03, 64 FR 19616, Apr. 21, 1999, unless otherwise noted.
cite as: 14 CFR 415.109