So America owns the moon and you have to beg permission to go there! FFS world get your shit together and go land there without permission to prove the USA does not own the moon.

I didn't realise America owns the Moon. When did that happen? The arrogance of the concept it is breathtaking...

I couldn't see anywhere in the article where the Americans asked any other nation! Now - It may be that the American authorities DID ask other nations of this planet, but they don't get a mention in the article.
(BTW - Who did America ask before they landed on the moon? Other nations of the Earth? No-one, I would guess)
I can understand it if the "permit" was to allow travel through American airspace on the way up/down, but a "permit to land on the moon"?? Really??
GO "TEAM AMERICA!" Graduated from "World Police" to "Intergalactic Police" without anyone even noticing...

Wow, so the USA has claimed the moon? I thought it orbited the earth, not just the USA - then again, that is the only country on earth who holds a 'world series' that no other country takes part in.......

People seem to misunderstand this, they talk like it's the US claiming the moon. This isn't true, as stated in the article:
"Nonetheless, it is still necessary for the US to ensure that the payload being launched was in line with its national security and foreign policy interests, and that it complies with any international obligations to which the country is held. One such obligation is the the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, which requires that state parties "authorize and continuously supervise" the activities of all space missions, including those of commercial nature, under their jurisdiction."
This isn't about the US 'claiming' anything, it's about the US ensuring that a satellite launched from its soil has a flight plan that will (should, anyway, nothing is ever 100% certain) not interfere with any other international traffic up there.

I agree lol. It's got me completely perplexed to say the least. Though our existence in not owed to USA i wonder how long it will be before we're charged to breath?! Americans..pffff!! Think they own the world and every other worldly body. Hurry up China and land on the moon and drive thier buggy into a ditch haha.

Whatever they do, I really hope they land at the same site as the Apollo landings. Oh, the glee, the delight to be able to shut those moon hoaxers up once and for all.

Who gave the members that originated the, Outer Space Treaty of 1967, jurisdiction over the moon? I doubt that China will pay much attention to it. Moon Express could probably save themselves a lot of bureaucratic bullshit if they just set themselves up on an island in the middle of the Pacific where they wouldn't need to go 'cap in hand' to the US government which doesn't have the system to handle things in the first place.

As an ardent science fiction addict in the 60's, I can only say, 'About time!' I've been waiting half a lifetime for fiction to become fact in this field. Its happened in many other areas, but not space, which has been a big disappointment to me. When Arthur C Clark wrote '2001 A space odyssey,' he expected it to be close to realisation, and it could have been if the resources wasted on futile wars had been put into the potentially more lucrative space exploration program. I probably wont live to see a space station as portrayed in the film, more's the pity, but Moon Express is at least a start.

"For the first time ever, a private company has been given permission to land on the moon. The authorization from the US Government means....."
This article wasn't worded very well, it really does give the impression that the USA own all the rights to the moon. An arrogant assumption guaranteed to get the backs up of most international readers.