PHOENIX — The possibility of a commercial spaceport in Arizona is moving beyond the idea stage, with Sierra Vista pursuing a federal license and a new coalition preparing to seek funding for space-related infrastructure.
The update comes after an ABC15 follow-up on Arizona’s growing space economy and the newly released Arizona Space Blueprint.
Space Rising, the private group behind the Blueprint, told ABC15 Mornings Anchor Kaley O'Kelley their group is now working with Sierra Vista Mayor Clea McCaa and Tony Boone, the city’s Director of Tourism, Economic Development and Spaceport, as it forms an Arizona Space Economic Development Coalition.
The group says the coalition will include major economic development organizations and communities like Sierra Vista and Yuma. One of its initiatives would be focused on bringing a spaceport to one or both locations.
Sierra Vista is already taking a major step toward that goal, pursuing a Federal Aviation Administration Part 433 license to operate a spacecraft reentry site. Sierra Vista says the licensing process could result in approval by early 2027.
That would make Sierra Vista a location where spacecraft could return to Earth.
The city’s municipal airport shares its airfield with Fort Huachuca’s Libby Army Airfield and has a 12,001-foot runway.
BlackStar Orbital has also signed a letter of intent with Sierra Vista as the company works toward establishing a spacecraft research, development and manufacturing facility at the airport.
Space Rising reps also told ABC15 one of the coalition’s goals will be pursuing federal funding to help develop the infrastructure around potential Arizona spaceports.
The group says it is watching two pieces of legislation currently moving through Congress: the BUILD America 250 Act and the SPACEPORT Act.
The BUILD America 250 Act is a five-year surface transportation bill. It cleared the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee by a 62-2 vote in May but has not become law. Space Rising says it sees potential funding opportunities within the legislation for infrastructure connected to spaceport development.
The separate SPACEPORT Act is directly focused on space transportation infrastructure.
Under the House version of the bill, federal grants could cover up to 90% of an eligible project’s cost.
The legislation would also authorize up to $10 million per year for space transportation infrastructure grants. The bill remains pending in Congress.
No federal spaceport funding has been awarded to Arizona through either proposal.
Yuma and Sierra Vista have different roles
The larger Arizona concept involves two different types of spaceport operations.
When Space Rising co-founder Taryn Struck spoke with O'Kelley in April, she described Yuma as a potential departure or launch location and Sierra Vista as a potential reentry site.
That same idea now appears in the Arizona Space Blueprint, which identifies two emerging spaceport initiatives and recommends connecting Phoenix, Tucson, Yuma, Sierra Vista and rural Arizona as part of one statewide infrastructure strategy.
The Blueprint also argues Arizona has a relatively short window to establish itself as one of the country’s major space-economy hubs. Its final section puts that window at roughly three to five years.
The Blueprint says Arizona already ranks first nationally in the concentration of guided missile and space-vehicle manufacturing employment and cites more than $2.8 billion in aerospace and defense expansion investment in the state over the past five years.
The question now is whether Arizona can turn those existing assets into a coordinated space industry that includes manufacturing, jobs, research and eventually launch and reentry infrastructure.
Space Rising’s Blueprint is a set of private-sector recommendations, not an official state plan.
