Space Operations and Airspace Safety: Debris Response Areas

As more and more commercial space operations occur, the FAA is sharing how it protects the flying public, including during an anomaly with debris.

The FAA creates Aircraft Hazard Areas (AHAs) to prohibit aircraft from flying in the closed airspace around the path of a launch or reentry. The agency also may establish Debris Response Areas (DRAs) to cover airspace beyond the AHAs. A DRA is a contingency response and is activated when a space launch vehicle experiences an anomaly that generates unplanned debris in the airspace.

Kim Stevens

Kim Stevens is the publisher of State Aviation Journal, which he founded in 2009. A longtime commercial-rated pilot, he was introduced to state aviation in 1992 as Director of the Nebraska Department of Aeronautics, later serving as Deputy Division Director for the Arizona Department of Transportation's Aeronautics Division. From 2013 to 2018, he was Director of Communications and Operations for the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) in Washington, D.C. Relocating to North Carolina, Kim worked for the Raleigh-Durham International Airport for two years and now concentrates solely on the Journal. Prior to his aviation career, Kim spent a decade in the newspaper and magazine business.