Bezos’s Blue Origin makes 5th crewed flight into space

Jeff Bezos' space tourism venture Blue Origin launches its fifth crewed capsule mission from its base near Van Horn, Texas, U.S. June 4, 2022 in a still image from video. Blue Origin/Handout via Reuters 

WASHINGTON (AFP): Jeff Bezos’s company Blue Origin flew six tourists into space for a 10-minute ride Saturday, successfully carrying out its fifth crewed mission.

The white spacecraft called New Shepard lifted off with a roar from a desert spot in west Texas.

The crew hooted with glee as the rocket reached space, a Blue Origin webcast showed.

The flight included engineer Katya Echazarreta, who at 26 became the youngest American woman in space. The Guadalajara native also became the first Mexican-born woman to go into space.

Her spot was sponsored by Space for Humanity, a program which seeks to democratise access to space and selected her from among 7,000 candidates.

The crew also included the first Brazilian to go into space, Victor Correa Hespanha, as well as businessmen Hamish Harding, Jaison Robinson, Victor Vescovo and Evan Dick.

Dick also flew on New Shepard’s third crewed flight in December.

Ticket prices are a closely guarded secret.

This flight had been scheduled for May 20 but was delayed because of a problem with one of the spacecraft’s back-up systems. Blue Origin did not give details of the problem.

Blue Origin is a leading player in the nascent space tourism market.

It flew Bezos on its maiden crewed flight in July 2021, and has also flown Star Trek icon William Shatner and Laura Shepard Churchley, the daughter of the first American in space.

Blue Origin’s competitor for this kind of thing is Virgin Galactic.

But since its maiden voyage last July carrying its founder, the business tycoon Richard Branson, the spacecraft has stayed on the ground to undergo modifications.