Amazon told US regulators on Wednesday that Elon Musk does not believe government regulations apply to the Tesla and SpaceX billionaire i...
Amazon told US regulators on Wednesday that Elon Musk does not believe government regulations apply to the Tesla and SpaceX billionaire in a scathing filing amid an ongoing rivalry over satellite launches.
In a harshly worded filing with the Federal Communications Commission, (FCC) Amazon accused Musk of ignoring a variety of government-imposed rules, including several Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requirements.
'Whether it is launching satellites with unlicensed antennas, launching rockets without approval, building an unapproved launch tower, or re-opening a factory in violation of a shelter-in-place order, the conduct of SpaceX and other Musk-led companies makes their view plain: rules are for other people, and those who insist upon or even simply request compliance are deserving of derision and ad hominem attacks,' Amazon wrote.
'If the FCC regulated hypocrisy, SpaceX would be keeping the commission very busy.'
Amazon says Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk (pictured) has a habit of shirking the rules as regulators probe the company's Autopilot software more seriously
Pictured: Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon and Musk are rivals in the private space launch business
Both SpaceX and Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday. The FCC and FAA declined to comment.
Amazon's Project Kuiper, a planned $10 billion network of over 3,000 satellites that will provide high-speed internet from space, faces stiff competition from SpaceX's Starlink network - a broadband internet system already in its beta form intended 'to meet the needs of consumers across the globe via a constellation of low Earth orbit satellites,' the company's website reads.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Musk are rivals in the private space launch business. Bezos' Blue Origin has challenged the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's decision to award a $2.9 billion lunar lander contract to SpaceX, with those projects separate to the billionaires' satellite ambitions.
A graphic showing the design of Amazon's user antenna Amazon's Project Kuiper reveals design of antennas customers will use for internet-from-space constellation
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the 26th batch of approximately 60 satellites for SpaceX's Starlink broadband network lifts off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral on May 4
On August 25, Amazon asked the FCC to reject a proposed SpaceX revision to its satellite configuration plans, saying it was at odds with FCC rules and left 'nearly every major detail unsettled.'
Tesla is currently facing a National Highway Transportation Safety Administration probe over the autopilot system in its cars following 13 crashes - one fatal - feared to have been caused by the vehicles' sensors getting confused by parked emergency responder vehicles' flashing lights.
Last week, SpaceX accused Amazon in its own filing with the FCC of seeking to delay SpaceX's plan, saying it was 'only the latest in its continuing efforts to slow down competition.'
'While SpaceX has proceeded to deploy more than 1,700 satellites, Amazon has yet to even attempt to address the radio frequency interference and orbital debris issues that must be resolved before Amazon can deploy its constellation,' SpaceX added.
The aerospace company suggested that 'as (Amazon) falls behind competitors ... it is more than willing to use regulatory and legal processes to create obstacles designed to delay those competitors from leaving Amazon even further behind.'
Meanwhile, Amazon's filing said 'SpaceX has just one name for any private company that dares point out its flouting of laws and regulations: 'anti-competitive.''
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