If Katy Perry flying to space wasn't already controversial enough, one high-ranking official in the Trump administration has now suggested she might've defied Federal Aviation Administration guidelines. Perry was one of the six women who flew on the April 14 flight to space, but since landing back on Earth, she's faced nothing but controversy.
Blue Origin is seemingly trying to make a name for itself by putting celebrities into the cosmos, and following Star Trek's William Shatner earning the honor of being the oldest person in space, Perry is the latest high-profile name to make the trip up there.
Even before NS-31 blasted off, there were complaints from Olivia Munn that it was a 'gluttonous' waste of money. That's only gotten worse in the aftermath, especially with concerns about the environmental impact and a resurfaced video of Perry fighting against climate change.
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Perry has become something of an easy target following the 11-minute trip, but despite her only being 'in space' for around four minutes, she's taking heat from the likes of Amy Schumer, Lily Allen, and even fast food chain Wendy's.
The "Woman's World" singer reportedly 'regrets' her behavior during the trip, but on a more serious note, US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy suggests that Perry and the rest might've broken FAA guidelines.
Posting on X, Duffy wrote: "The last FAA guidelines under the Commercial Space Astronaut Wings Program were clear: Crewmembers who travel into space must have 'demonstrated activities during flight that were essential to public safety, or contributed to human space flight safety." He then referred to Perry, Lauren Sánchez, CBS Mornings' Gayle King, civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen, ex-NASA engineer Aisha Bowe, and film producer Kerianne Flynn on the 11-minute flight as 'brave and glam' but added: "The crew who flew to space this week on an automated flight by Blue Origin were brave and glam, but you cannot identify as an astronaut. They do not meet the FAA astronaut criteria."
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The FFA falls under the domain of the Department of Transportation, with Duffy concluding: "The FAA no longer designates anyone as an ‘astronaut.’ In addition, the FAA does not define where space begins."
In 2004, the FAA unveiled its Commercial Space Astronaut Wings program, which typically recognized only NASA's best as an official astronaut. The rules were changed in 2021 when Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic started heading into commercial space travel territory. This was when the FAA added the caveat about contributing to human space flight safety.
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It all goes back to the idea that suborbital flights aren't technically designated as space flights because they don't travel at the same height or speed as NASA or SpaceX missions.
Still, the fact that the FAA doesn't dictate who is and isn't an astronaut makes it a contentious issue.
Many are still vexed by the flight, with its harshest critics calling it little more than a media stunt, and others branding it an insult to Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams being stuck in space for 286 days.
More and more celebrities are speaking out, and while Gayle King and Lauren Sánchez have defended the mission's statement, the fact that Jessica Chastain shared a piece from The Guardian that referred to NS-31 as "the utter defeat of American feminism" is hardly the press Perry and co. will be wanting right now.