Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, recently criticised the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for penalising SpaceX for "trivia" while failing to act against Boeing, which has long been accused of risking the security of passengers.
Musk accused the aviation administration's leadership for prioritising "petty matters" at SpaceX while ignoring serious safety concerns at Boeing. In a statement, he claimed that the FAA is "attacking SpaceX for petty matters unrelated to safety" and turning a blind eye towards more serious safety risks at Boeing.
"The FAA leadership spends their resources attacking SpaceX for petty matters that have nothing to do with safety, while neglecting real safety issues at Boeing," he said in a social media post.
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"This is deeply wrong and puts human lives at risk. NASA deemed the Boeing capsule unsafe for astronaut return, turning, out of necessity, to SpaceX, yet instead of fining Boeing for putting astronauts at risk, the FAA is fining SpaceX for trivia!" he further added.
Boeing has long been under radar after technical issues were found in its Starliner spacecraft. In the entire post, Musk was referring to NASA's decision to return Boeing's Starliner astronauts, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, on a SpaceX craft in February 2025.
The duo had initially flown to the International Space Station aboard Starliner during its test flight. However, technical problems with the Boeing spacecraft caused delays in its return. This eventually forced NASA to bring Starliner back without its crew onboard.
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Why Did the FAA Hit SpaceX with a Massive Fine?
On Tuesday, September 17, the FAA announced proposed civil penalties totaling $633,009 against SpaceX for allegedly violating license requirements during two separate 2023 launches. According to the FAA, SpaceX used an unapproved launch control room during the PSN SATRIA mission on June 18 last year.
“Safety drives everything we do at the FAA, including a legal responsibility for the safety oversight of companies with commercial space transportation licenses,” FAA Chief Counsel Marc Nichols said in a statement. “Failure of a company to comply with the safety requirements will result in consequences.”
Meanwhile, the entire conflict between the aviation agency and the Billionaire has also turned political owing to the upcoming US elections.
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