SPACE It came from outer space Witnessing a NASA rocket launch from the cockpit By First Officer Jordan Webb, Log Board member What on earth is that thing?, the captain asked, his eyes wide open and jaw firmly on the floor. For the first time that day, despite a long four-sector duty that came with short runways, hairy winds and ambitious block times, I could sense he was startled. I didnt know the answer myself, but the goosebumps on my arms told me this ball of light wasnt on Earth, nor was it anywhere near it, as it dwarfed us at the dizzying height of 40,000ft. As we both crammed our eyes as close to the flight deck windows as physically possible, trying to make sense of this ethereal-looking cone of light that appeared to hover in the dark night sky, our ears were suddenly filled with similar questions from fellow aviators all over northern Europe. The inquiries had begun. Do you guys see that?! Is it the Russians? Is that thing military? Are we being invaded? The breathtaking phenomenon had a worldly explanation. We were fortunate enough to witness the NASA Atlas V rocket as it re-entered the Earths atmosphere, having deployed a satellite that will track land and sea movements as part of the companys ongoing monitoring of climate change. NASAs Atlas V rocket lights up the sky on re-entering Earths atmosphere Examination licences for Air Trafc Controllers (ATCO s). Weekly House, Padbury Oaks 583 Bath Road, Longford, UB7 OEH our own car-parking facilities. www.heathrowmedical.com Medicals to meet EASA and CAA requirements as well as Initial, Renewal & Revalidation European Class 3 Medical Personal service with a quick turnaround for Initial, Excellent availability of appointments. Adjacent to Heathrow Airport, we have the standards of the major International civil aviation authorities including CASA, Canada, and GACA. Renewal & Revalidation Class 1 and Class 2 applications. Increasing numbers of rockets will be sent into space by private companies in the coming years For almost 20 minutes, the guard frequency became an open forum despite the scenes, this was a clear abuse of the frequency Launched from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, USA, vast swathes of northern Europe witnessed its return to Earth, both in the skies and from the ground. The guard frequency, 121.500, on which other aircrews were seeking an explanation for what they were seeing is reserved for emergency broadcasts, used to transmit over a large area if a pilot finds themself in distress, or in an attempt to reach aircraft that have lost radio contact. On this night, for almost 20 minutes, it became an open forum in which crews mused over possible theories for this astonishing sight. Ultimately, despite the mesmerising scenes, this was a clear abuse of the frequency. Rapid expansion At the time of writing, American entrepreneur Elon Musks SpaceX company is planning 12 further rocket launches in 2021 alone. The rapid expansion into space from Musks company has been staggering, and coupled with other private ventures, such as Richard Bransons spaceflight-wing Virgin Galactic it is inevitable that airborne occurrences such as this are only likely to increase in regularity. In June 2021, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) became the UKs national space regulator. The authority expects the first rocket launch licence to be granted next year, to meet the UK Governments ambition of the first orbital rocket launch for satellites in Europe in 2022. Colin Macleod, Head of UK Space Regulation at CAA, said the authority will act in a safe, secure and sustainable manner to protect the people and property involved, and other airspace users, and enable a growing and active space industry. As the UKs airspace regulator, the CAA will also handle any airspace changes required to enable space activities from UK soil to take place. It may seem drastic, but as flight crews are very well aware when things go wrong, they go wrong quickly. A fleeting 20 minutes of chatter on the guard frequency may seem insignificant to some, but problems seldom keep themselves to apt timing. Its clear to see that rocket launches on both sides of the Atlantic are on the rise (if youll excuse the pun), so an argument must be made for their inclusion to pilot NOTAMs (Notice To Airmen). On this particular evening, a heads-up to the possibility of a bright rocket sighting over the northern parts of Europe would have potentially decluttered the radios, but, instead, our pre-flight briefing of the available NOTAMs brought our attention to the ongoing airspace closures almost 2,000 miles away in Afghanistan. Handy information for our flight back from Poland! There is an argument to include rocket launches in pilot NOTAMs Email: medicals@heathrowmedical.com Tel: 020 8528 2633