[FPSPACE] Liability for Mir, Iridium and the OST?

[Phillip Clark]

On Sat, 21 Oct 2000, Dwayne Allen Day wrote:
> I don't think there is any real precedent for this under the OST, is
> there?  Most commercial spacecraft never face the possibility of falling
> down (because they are in GEO).  But I guess that Iridium is the American
> equivalent of this.  Iridium has decided to de-orbit its satellites even
> though the US government would be responsible for any damages caused by
> them.  But would the US government then have any domestic standing to sue
> Iridium to reclaim its money?  Or by signing the OST, did the US
> government essentially give away its right to sue companies for damages
> that it has accepted liability for?

In the case of Iridium my understanding is that while the US Government
would be responsible under UN treaty for the payment of compensation, the
Government could then go after Iridium for a refund of those funds since
they are a commercial company (the UN treaty was drawn up,I think, in the
days before commercial companies had that many satellites - the vast
majority were government owned).   I discussed this with a few people in
the space debris "trade" and also someone who had a good feel for space
law matters a few months ago.

Of course, if Iridium has ceased trading and/or has no assets then this
would be a purely academic point.

Phillip Clark

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Phillip S Clark                                     22 Winterbourne Close
Molniya Space Consultancy                           Hastings
Compiler/Publisher, Worldwide Satellite Launches    E Sussex  TN34 1XG
                                                    U.K.

Specialist in "space archeology" - the older and more obscure the more 
interesting it is !
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