The Washington DC Director, and central point of contact, of Spaceport Associates is Derek Webber. Other Associates, based throughout the spaceport states, are involved in helping solve client problems as the specialized need arises, with expertise in marketing, business planning, regulatory affairs, economic assessments, design, systems engineering, procurement processes, astronaut perspectives, and legal matters. Derek Webber is an Affiliate of SpaceWorks Engineering (www.sei.aero).

Derek Webber, a former satellite and launch vehicle systems engineer, Head of Procurement at a satellite services organization, and Managing Director of a satellite broadband provider, has citations in “Who’s Who in Science and Engineering” and “Who’s Who in the World”, and has made contributions to the creation of the space tourism industry for about a decade. He was awarded a certificate of recognition for his contributions by the Space Tourism Society at its Orbit Awards event in 2006. The following list gives a selection from these contributions:

• 1997 First life member of Space Tourism Society, Los Angeles, CA
• 1998 Paper “Station MIR – First Hotel for Space Tourists?”, Albuquerque, NM
• 2001 Paper “Markets for 2nd Generation RLV” , Huntsville, AL
• 2002 Report “Space Tourism Market Study” – Futron/Zogby Survey Report
• 2002 Report of Commission on Future of US Aerospace Industry-Chapter 3
• 2002 TV interview “Direct Connection”, Maryland Public TV
• 2002 Radio Shows KNX LA, W-SYR Syracuse, 971 FM St Louis, etc.
• 2003 Report “NASA ASCENT Study of Space Markets”, Huntsville, AL
• 2003 OpEd “The Emerging Roadmap to Space”, Space News
• 2003 Paper “The First 100 Years of Public Space Travel”, Dayton, OH
• 2003 Panelist, Washington Space Business Round Table, Public Space Travel
• 2003 HR 3245 Commercial Space Act Capitol Hill Meetings with staffers
• 2004 Contributed to ASTWG workshop on future spaceport and ATC systems
• 2004 TV Interview “Around Space” Fairfax Public Access TV/Channel 10
• 2004 Paper “Space Tourism – the Enabler”, Spaceflight magazine, UK
• 2004 Article “The Future Starts Here”, The Space Review
• 2004 Paper “The New Commercial Spaceports”, San Diego, CA
• 2004 Centennial Challenges Workshop – suggested achievement prizes
• 2005 Member Expert Advisory Panel for study at LaTrobe University, Australia
• 2005 Produced business development plan for an orbital tourism operator.
• 2005 Developed and presented 3 day course on spaceport operations in Brazil
• 2005 Session Chair of space tourism and spaceport panels at ISDC 2005
• 2005 Contributed to SEI NESC model for economic development of space
• 2005 Regulatory Inputs to FAA-AST on Human Spaceflight NPRM
• 2006 Paper “Designing the Orbital Tourism Experience”, Albuquerque, NM
• 2006 Proposal writing for client making bid for NASA/COTS funding
• 2006 Contributed chapters to two books: “Kids to Space” and “Beyond Earth”
• 2006 Report “The Adventurers’ Survey” - with Incredible Adventures
• 2006 Guest on “The Space Show” for Radio and podcast on space tourism
• 2006 Chair of panel on space tourism at “Transforming Space” conference
• 2007 Paper "Risking Space in the Next 50 Years – Perspectives for Space Tourism", Dallas, TX
• 2007 Entered into Affiliate arrangement with SpaceWorks Engineering, Inc.
• 2007 Article “Getting There”, The Space Review
• 2007 Contributed language to FAA Regulations on Experimental Permits for Reusable Suborbital Rockets.
• 2007 Panelist, Space Investment Summit, New York
• 2007 Elected Advocate of Space Frontier Foundation
• 2007 Lecturer on space tourism at Commercial Space Medicine Workshop, New Orleans, LA
• 2007 Inputs via COMSTAC RLV Working Group aimed at amending ITAR Regulations
• 2007 Developed and Presented 10 day course on Space Business, Space Tourism and Spaceport Operations, Brasilia, Brazil
• 2007 Paper “Space Tourism – A New Field for Space Law"
• 2007 Contributed Chapter to “Space Enterprise-Living and Working Offworld in the 21st Century” (Pub Springer-Praxis, July 2008)
• 2007 Regulatory Inputs on biomedical regulation and performance targets
• 2008 Added educational Space Tourism Tutorial to web site
• 2008 Paper “Point-to-Point Sub-orbital Space Tourism: Some Initial Considerations”, Arcachon, France
• 2008 Session Chair, Ground Infrastructure, 1st IAA Symposium on Private Human Access to Space, Arcachon, France
• 2008 Member of RLV Taskforce on Training, providing guidance to FAA on space tourism crew and passenger training standards.
• 2008 Contributions to FAA on changes to ATC regulations for public space travel.
• 2008 Visiting lecturer for Summer School of International Space University in Barcelona, Spain, discussing spaceport design.
• 2008 Joint author of paper “Is the World Ready for High-Speed Intercontinental Package Delivery (Yet?)” for International Astronautical Congress, Glasgow, UK
• 2008 Contributed input “Seven Pointers for Success” to President elect Obama’s Transition Team.
• 2009 Article “Yes we can! How to ensure Change you can believe in for the Space Program”, The Space Review.
• 2009 Reviewer for draft space policy report “America’s Future in Space” for the National Research Council.
• 2009 Presented talk “Space Tourism Markets – What We Know and What We Don’t Know” at the Google Campus, Mountain View, CA
• 2009 Member of “Fast Forward” multi-company study team exploring the possibilities of high speed global point-to-point space transportation.
• 2009 Interviewed for New Scientist article, by Greg Klerkx, on spaceplanes.
• 2009 Contributed chapter to Indian book on space law “Space Law: Legal Contours”.
• 2009 Consulted for a client on hybrid rocket propulsion.
• 2009 Consulted for a client on how hypersonic point-to-point transport could potentially lead to large markets for orbital space tourism.
• 2009 Signed contract for a book on space tourism to be published in 2010.
• 2009 Visiting Lecturer on space tourism at the California International Business University, San Diego
• 2009 Interviewed for Voice of America TV documentary about space tourism for broadcast to Asia
• 2009 Appointment as Member of IAA Study Group 3.9 on Private Human Access to Space
• 2010 Paper on Point-to-point Sub-Orbital space Tourism included in special edition of Acta Astronautica.
• 2010 Volunteer Docent at Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum
• 2010 Speaker on space tourism at event at British School of Washington
• 2010 Speaker on space tourism at Parkland School, Rockville, Maryland
• 2010 Joined faculty of London Institute of Space Policy and Law.
• 2010 Full report on Adventurers’ Survey made free to the industry
• 2010 Joint paper on price elasticity of demand for orbital space tourism prepared for AIAA conference in Anaheim, CA
• 2010 Advisor to McGill University study on the business case for a space tourism industry in India