Four Space Tourists, Including William Shatner, Return to Earth Safely

Blue Origin flight NS-18 completed its suborbital flight safely today, making it the company’s second successful manned voyage. 

Four astronauts, including Dr. Chris Boshuizen, Glen de Vries, Audrey Powers, and William Shatner made their mark on a portion of aviation history when they returned to Earth on October 13.  The 90 year-old Shatner made history as the oldest man in space. 

After their capsule made landfall, the astronauts had an impromptu meeting with reporters.  Flanked by Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos, Shatner said “What you have given me is the most profound experience I can ask… I’m so filled with emotion about what just happened, it’s extraordinary.” 

Emotional, he hugged Bezos, saying “I hope I never recover from this, I hope that I can maintain what I feel now, I don’t want to lose it. It’s so much larger than you, and me, and life.” 

The off-the-cuff conversation between them continued, as Shatner described the enormity of space, and the expansion of mindset often experienced in astronauts.  “I can’t even begin to express what I…  What I would love to do is communicate as much as possible, the jeopardy,  the vulnerability… This air that’s keeping us alive is thinner than your skin.  It’s a sliver, it’s immeasurably small, when you think in terms of the universe.  It’s negligible, this air.  To dirty it is…[unconscionable]”  he said to Bezos.  The Blue Origin Founder was one of the few present who could understand the experience, himself a veteran of NS-17’s suborbital flight. 

Bob Smith, CEO Blue Origin made a statement to announce mission success.  “At Blue Origin, we are motivated by the dreamers that inspire us and the builders who turn those dreams into reality. Today’s crew represented both dreamers and builders. We had the honor of flying our very own Audrey Powers, Vice President of New Shepard Operations, who fulfilled a lifelong dream to go to space and has been an integral part of building New Shepard.”

“Our two customers, Chris Boshuizen and Glen de Vries, have built their own successful ventures and have now realized their own dreams of space travel. And, as everyone knows, William Shatner has played an important role in describing and imagining the wonders of the universe and inspired many of us to pursue a career in the space industry.”

The mission marked another successful launch of Blue Origin’s reusable vehicle, the New Shepard, a point of pride for the company as they seek further ticket sales for their fledgling suborbital tourism business.  Further flights are planned for 2022, with passenger listings to be announced. 

 “This flight was another step forward in flying astronauts safely and often. It’s an incredible team and we are just getting started.”    

FMI: www.blueorigin.com