Cavossa: CLD Companies Want Stability, Not a New Plan
At a House Science, Space, and Technology subcommittee hearing on March 25, 2026, Dave Cavossa, president of the Commercial Space Federation, told lawmakers that the seven companies developing commercial low‑Earth‑orbit destinations want to keep to the original NASA plan rather than adopt the agency’s newly announced course. The remarks followed NASA’s Ignition briefing on March 24, 2026, where Acting Administrator Sean Duffy and senior officials presented a revised pathway for Commercial LEO Destinations (CLDs) that would replace the International Space Station (ISS). The hearing, held in Washington, D.C., marked the first public response from the industry to the agency’s request for information released the same day.
NASA’s revised concept calls for a government‑procured “core” module equipped with two docking ports that would attach to the aging ISS and provide life‑support services to commercial modules until they separate as free‑flying stations. The proposal diverges from the Phase 1 CLD awards made in 2021 and postpones the anticipated Phase 2 procurement that industry has awaited since last summer. NASA officials noted that the agency lacks sufficient funding to support two parallel CLD providers, raising the risk that no commercial station will be ready before the ISS is deorbited. Current plans call for the ISS to be retired in 2030, although a Senate Commerce Committee amendment earlier this month could extend operations by two years. The agency also indicated that the new core module would not require independent propulsion or life‑support systems because it would be docked to the ISS, allowing transfer of existing ISS hardware such as the carbon‑dioxide removal system.
The commercial side counters that its members have secured more than a billion dollars in private capital over the past six months and several billions over recent years, with some firms already selling out rack space on their future stations. The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel, represented by former astronaut Charlie Precourt, warned that the ISS is entering its highest‑risk phase and that any gap in low‑Earth‑orbit capability could affect microgravity research, human‑health studies, and broader exploration readiness. Rep. George Whitesides (D‑CA) questioned the feasibility of developing a new core module within the remaining ISS lifespan, citing a typical ten‑year construction timeline for ISS components. The disagreement underscores the tension between NASA’s acquisition strategy and the public‑private partnership model that underpins the emerging orbital economy.
