Jeff Bezos's Rocket Takes 6 Tourists On Flight To Edge Of Space

Jeff Bezos’s aerospace company, Blue Origin, on Thursday launched a rocket with six passengers from west Texas to the edge of space.

According to an official statement, the crew included Tim Drexler, Dr Linda Edwards, Alain Fernandez, Alberto Gutiérrez, Jim Hendren, and Dr Laura Stiles (Blue Origin’s Director of New Shepard Launch Operations).

Stiles was a late addition to the crew, stepping in after Andrew Yaffe unfortunately had to withdraw from the flight due to illness.

This was the 38th overall for the New Shepherd programmee and 17th time carrying humans to the edge of the space.

“As we enter 2026, we’re focused on continuing to deliver transformational experiences for our customers through the proven capability and reliability of New Shepard,”

said Phil Joyce, SVP, New Shepard. “We are grateful for our astronaut customers who put their trust in our team to bring this experience into reality.”

According to India Today, after the vertical liftoff at 9:55 pm (Indian time) on Thursday, the booster propelled the capsule towards the Karman line, the internationally recognised boundary of space.

After this, the capsule separated, allowing the passengers to unbuckle and experience weightlessness for approximately three minutes.

During their time in space, they saw the curvature of the Earth against the darkness of the universe through the largest windows ever integrated into a spacecraft. As the capsule coasted in microgravity, the booster rocket autonomously returned to Earth.

The rocket used its BE-3 liquid-oxygen/liquid-hydrogen engine to slow down for a pinpoint vertical landing on a concrete pad. The crew capsule descended on its own, protected by a heat shield before deploying three large parachutes.

Just before touching the desert floor, a “retro-thrust” system fired to ensure the landing was as gentle as possible. The entire journey lasted roughly 11 minutes.

India Today reported that though the focus was on the passengers, the mission also carried research payloads inside the crew capsule.

Blue Origin has now flown 98 people to space over its 17 human spaceflights, the first of which took place on July 20, 2021.