“Florida is hot!”
That is how Frank DiBello, Space Florida’s President and CEO, started his annual update at today’s National Space Club luncheon.
And he’s not kidding. My phone app gave a temperature of 90 degrees as I left the talk this afternoon but my car thermometer read 97 degrees –
and it’s not even summer yet! “And not just because of our
weather,” he continued. The aerospace market in Florida is hot.
Although technology
failed us when he attempt to show this promotional tourism video, he
got the point across: space is important to Florida’s past,
present, and future.
A lot of Frank’s
talking points were familiar: Florida has a talented workforce, space
infrastructure, and a great history of achievement. The Cape Canaveral
Spaceport (Kennedy Space Center and the Cape Canaveral Air Force
Station combined) is a jewel of the state. There’s no denying that
so many in the space business (such as myself) love working in
Florida.
Frank discussed some
of Space Florida’s big recent successes: the Shuttle Landing
Facility (SLF) hand-over from NASA to Space Florida, Blue Origin’s
decision to launch and manufacture at the Cape, the OneWeb and Airbus
decision to open a factory here. So many big news items, so
little time to discuss them all in detail!
Frank’s main focus was the future. Ever since 1989 when the state
created Florida Space Authority, Space Florida’s predecessor
organization, the state’s goal has been to attract and retain space
business. Space Florida’s goal is to become a global leader in
space, but there is and always will be competition. “The
marketplace can and will speak with its feet,” Frank warned, as he has in the past. But joyfully he added, “ And many
are speaking with their feet by coming here.”
Frank spoke of his vision for Florida’s spaceport in 2025 (a bit of
an arbitrary date, generally meaning “the future”). His vision is
to create an independent spaceport authority to handle routine
launches and is tailored to handle commerce. Federal institutions
such as NASA and the DoD have their charters. But with academic and
private sectors, the space industry will grow. He emphasized that this agency may not be Space Florida; it may be a federal, state, or quasi-government agency.
To assist with the evolution of the Cape Canaveral Spaceport, Frank
plans to create a Commercial Industry Task Force to assess whether
Space Florida is truly achieving the goal they’ve set for being
global leader. At this time, he didn't have a lot of details to reveal about this task force, just the general idea that there's work to be done.
Work that needs to be done, for example: space infrastructure is being modernized and continues to be
upgraded. Right now, there is a capacity problem in nitrogen and
helium pipelines at the Cape. ULA and SpaceX both require use of
these pipelines. If one user needs it, another user must wait.
Businesses shouldn’t have to wait on their competition. There's also old, outdated infrastructure. Every piece
of infrastructure needs to have a function or create revenue, or it
will be disposed of.
“Our job as a spaceflight authority is to think outside the fence,”
Frank joked. Within the Q&A, he wrapped up by advocating that we
support Space Florida’s efforts by advocating for NASA and DoD
programs and budgets. It’s hard to do long range planning with
short term politics that are questioned every few years.
Frank and I
may disagree in regards to the need for NASA’s Space Launch System
and Orion for programmatic and political stability, but I agree with
his desire for sustainability and long-term planning. Florida has
come a long way since the retirement of the Space Shuttle program
five years ago and will continue to grow as NASA, DoD, and private
industry make long-term plans and continue to do them.
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