# 2026-22784: When Rockets Fall Apart, FAA Wants to Call It Safer 2026-22784, Conditional Expected Casualty Exception for Failures Resulting in an Uncontrolled Atmospheric Return, is a Federal Register proposed rule from Transportation Department, Federal Aviation Administration published 2026-11-09, effective Send comments on or before December 9, 2026.; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-11-11). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22784 - As of: 2026-11-11 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Document number: 2026-22784 - Title: Conditional Expected Casualty Exception for Failures Resulting in an Uncontrolled Atmospheric Return - Type: Proposed Rule - Agencies: Transportation Department; Federal Aviation Administration - Citation: 91 FR 70813 - Published: 2026-11-09 - Effective: Send comments on or before December 9, 2026. - Comments close: 2026-12-09 - Significant: no - Touches household money: yes - Regulation identifier numbers: 2120-AM33 - Last updated: 2026-11-11 ## In one line When Rockets Fall Apart, FAA Wants to Call It Safer ## Summary The FAA is proposing a new rule to make it easier for commercial space companies to get launch and reentry licenses. They want to allow operators to prove their vehicles will break up safely during an uncontrolled fall from the sky, reducing the chance of multiple injuries. This change aims to speed up approvals and lower costs, with public comments open until December 9, 2026. ## Abstract FAA proposes to amend its commercial space launch and reentry licensing regulations to streamline the licensing process and reduce regulatory burden for license applicants. Specifically, FAA proposes to allow a launch and reentry vehicle operator to protect against high consequence events during an uncontrolled atmospheric return by showing that there would be sufficient breakup of the vehicle to ensure protection against a single event expected to produce multiple casualties. ## Effects PRIA read - New breakup option for random reentries: benefit, medium. The FAA would let commercial launch or reentry operators meet the high-consequence protection rule for an uncontrolled atmospheric return (UAR) by showing the UAR would cause sufficient breakup of the vehicle (including components and undeployed payloads) to prevent a single event expected to produ… - Per-application time and cost savings: benefit, high. FAA estimates an applicant would avoid about 60 hours of aerospace-engineer labor by forgoing the CEC demonstration for a UAR, saving $5,777 per application in private-industry compensation. FAA estimates it would save about $3,897 in review costs per application, for a combined $9,674 total saving… - Official definition of 'Uncontrolled atmospheric return': benefit, low. The rule would add a definition for 'uncontrolled atmospheric return' in Sec. 401.7 as the passive descent of a vehicle from orbit caused by natural orbital decay where there is no ability to control the trajectory. The preamble clarifies a perigee of 70 nautical miles or greater is the threshold f… - No extra analysis or paperwork required: benefit, low. FAA says the breakup demonstration would use information already required by existing debris analysis (Sec. 450.121) and consequence analysis (Sec. 450.135(b)), so no additional analysis or new information collection is required under the Paperwork Reduction Act. - FAA finds no significant small-entity impact: benefit, low. Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, FAA certifies the proposed rule would not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities, so FAA did not prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis. ## Related documents - [2026-15585](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-15585): Requirements for Interference-Tolerant Radio Altimeter Systems, 2026-07-31 - [2026-13440](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-13440): Enabling Supersonic Overland Flight, 2026-07-02 - [2026-13126](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-13126): Designation-Restrict the Operation of Unmanned Aircraft in Close Proximity to a Fixed Site Facility; Extension of Comment Period, 2026-06-30 - [2026-08943](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-08943): Designation-Restrict the Operation of Unmanned Aircraft in Close Proximity to a Fixed Site Facility, 2026-05-06 - [2025-04846](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2025-04846): Extension of the Prohibition Against Certain Flights in the Territory and Airspace of Libya, 2025-03-20 - [2025-03853](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2025-03853): Enforcement Policy Regarding “Drug and Alcohol Testing of Certificated Repair Station Employees Located Outside of the United States; Corre…, 2025-03-11 ## Sources - [2026-22784 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/11/09/2026-22784/conditional-expected-casualty-exception-for-failures-resulting-in-an-uncontrolled-atmospheric-return) - [2026-22784 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-11-09/pdf/2026-22784.pdf) ## Related - [Previous: 2026-22783, Flight Safety Limits Objectives Burden Reducing Clarification](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22783) - [Next: 2026-22807, Medicare Program; Implementation of Sections 6219, 6220, and 6224 of the Consol…](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22807) - [All Federal Register documents](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22784 (as of 2026-11-11).