Commercial Spaceparks vs Commercial Spaceport Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. Department of Business Administration Sul Ross State University – Rio Grande College Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2006 - All rights reserved

Commercial Spaceports Emerged with development of commercial space operations Viewed as Gateways to space (Image - Starbooster) Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 20018- All rights reserved

Spaceports - The First Wave “Fields of Dreams” 1989-1999 Driven by SSTO (DC-X, Kistler, VentureStar) Visions of routine orbital flights Grand business plans $500 million+ projects Weekly, even daily flights to orbit High traffic volume (Image - NASA) Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved Everyone wanted one Cape York International Spaceport Asia-Pacific Commercial Launch Center Spaceport Canada California Spaceport Alaska Spaceport Montana Spaceport Idaho Spaceport Utah Spaceport Oklahoma Spaceport Virginia Commercial Space Launch Center (MARS) Spaceport Florida Nevada Spaceport Southwest Regional Spaceport (Spaceport America) Spaceport Washington Gulf Coast Regional Spaceport West Texas Spaceport South Texas Spaceport Spaceport Wisconsin Alabama Spaceport Arizona Mississippi Georgia South Carolina Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved But Reality Set in SSTO not achievable - yet! Traffic models more fantasy then reality Start-up space firms had no money to invest No real sort-term ROI Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

The Few Survivors of the First Wave California Spaceport (VAFB) Mojave Air and Spaceport Alaska Spaceport Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport Spaceport Florida Spaceport America (SRS) (Image - NASA) Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved What Happened? Often spaceports focused on single firms When the firm failed so did the spaceport Spaceports failed to ask the “hard” questions What is the REAL demand for launch services? Do the launch firms really have viable business models? What is our (Spaceport) Business model? Are Spaceports really just “airports” to space? Where is our ROI? How reasonable were the pro-formas? (Did they even do any?) They let fantasy rather then facts drive their planning! Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

The Second Spaceport Wave Cecil Spaceport (Florida) Houston Spaceport Colorado Spaceport Midland International Air and Space Port Canso Spaceport Huntsville Spaceport Spaceport Camden Boca Chica Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

But again reality will set in Traffic models more fantasy then reality Start-up space firms have no money to invest No real sort-term ROI Most of the Second Wave Spaceports Will Suffer the same fate as the First Wave. Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved Is there a way to prevent Second Wave from Repeating the Mistakes of the First Wave? Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Yes, First apply the Lessons Learned from the First Wave Craft a realistic spaceport business model Identify markets Focus on multiple (including non-space!) revenue sources Focus on multiple firms don’t put your eggs in one basket Scale your Business Model Start small and grow organically Keep expectations realistic Avoid fantasy traffic models – Spaceports are NOT airports to space. Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

The Key - Craft a Realistic Spaceport Business Model What is a viable business model for a spaceport? Is it really the same as the business models used for... Commercial Airports? Seaport? Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Commercial Airports Major Passenger and Freight Transportation Hubs Mass Transit/Auto/Truck/Air Large volume of hub traffic allows Dedication to single use - commercial aviation Large revenues from high volume traffic This doesn't sound like how a spaceport will work... Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Commercial Seaports Bulk Freight Transport hubs Rail/Truck Freight Large tonnage moving through Hubs allows Large revenue based on high traffic volumes Additional revenue from support services like warehousing This also doesn't sound like how a spaceport will work… Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Commercial Spaceports Limited Traffic Limited interaction with rail/truck/sea systems Very limited traffic Very few one-way flights per year to orbit (>10) Sub-orbital flights return to field No point-to-point traffic Spaceports are a long way from being transportation hubs. So perhaps Commercial Airports and Seaports are not good business models for spaceports... Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved If Commercial Spaceports are not transportation hubs what are they most similar to? Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Spaceport Characteristics Very limited traffic from new industries Very few launches to orbit Mostly ground based testing activities Space tourism activities - 99% of time on ground Air traffic limited Extensive R&D Activities High tech workforce Large land area for buffer zones Semi-isolated locations High Security Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved Spaceports sound more like an industrial park focused on space, a “Spacepark” New industrial activities dominate Heavy space related R&D Extensive on site testing Most activities within the boundaries of the facility Maybe instead of calling them spaceports we should start calling them spaceparks Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

A Realistic Business Model for Commercial Spaceparks Space focused Incubator for industries necessary to advance space commerce technology Advantages Multiple sources of revenue Broader revenue sources More “near-term” revenue sources More commercial focus Cross Fertilization of space technologies Broader political support resulting from increased near-term employment possibilities Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Non-Launch Industries Compatible with the Space Incubator Model Development and testing of robotic vehicles 3D manufacturing Research on Space Habitats Vertical Farming technology Solar Energy Development Solar based material refining and processing Space-based STEAM Education Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2006 - All rights reserved

Advantages of Space Tech Business Model Realistic expectations for revenue modeling Economic Impact models available Revenue forecasting models available Realistic expectations for facility success Revenue activities are able to start in the near-term Multiple revenue streams from multiple activities Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved Summary Spaceport wave built on a misunderstanding of what a spaceport is. Craft a realistic business model Spaceports as business incubators, Spaceparks, not transportation facilities Focus on near-term R&D firms and Earth based space markets Build realistic revenue models based on near-term business opportunities Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2018 - All rights reserved

Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2006 - All rights reserved Questions? Copyright Thomas L. Matula, Ph.D. 2006 - All rights reserved