Blue Origin's NS-37 New Shepard mission will carry Michaela "Michi" Benthaus, a wheelchair user and aerospace engineer, past the Kármán line — a first for someone who uses a wheelchair. The six-person suborbital flight lasts about 10–12 minutes and includes several minutes of microgravity. The launch from West Texas was scrubbed because of a technical issue during terminal count checks and will be rescheduled.
Historic Blue Origin Flight Will Carry First Wheelchair User Past the Kármán Line
Blue Origin via AP - PHOTO: This photo provided by Blue Origin shows Michaela Benthaus, a German engineer aiming to become the first wheelchair user in space, sitting in a capsule mockup Dec. 15, 2025, at Blue Origin's rocket launch site in Van Horn, Texas.
Blue Origin is preparing a landmark suborbital mission that will, for the first time, carry a person who uses a wheelchair past the Kármán line — the internationally recognized boundary of space about 62 miles (100 km) above Earth.
Mission Overview
The NS-37 flight will use a Blue Origin New Shepard vehicle, a fully reusable suborbital rocket and capsule system designed for short human spaceflights. The entire mission is expected to last roughly 10–12 minutes, during which passengers experience several minutes of microgravity before the capsule returns to Earth.
Passenger Highlight: Michaela "Michi" Benthaus
Michaela "Michi" Benthaus is an aerospace and mechatronics engineer who sustained a spinal cord injury in a 2018 mountain biking accident. She works with the European Space Agency and has campaigned for greater accessibility in spaceflight. Benthaus previously flew on a Zero-G research flight in 2022 and completed an analog astronaut mission simulating space operations on Earth. She also remains active in sports, including wheelchair tennis.
Blue Origin - PHOTO: In a press release posted on Dec. 3, 2025 Blue Origin announced the six people flying on its NS-37 mission. The crew includes Michaela (Michi) Benthaus, Joey Hyde, Hans Koenigsmann, Neal Milch, Adonis Pouroulis, and Jason Stansell.
The Crew
The six-person NS-37 manifest pairs Benthaus with a diverse group of professionals:
- Joel Hyde — Physicist and quantitative investor, retired hedge fund partner; inspired to pursue astrophysics after watching a Space Shuttle Atlantis launch in 1988.
- Hans Koenigsmann — German-American aerospace engineer, known for developing reusable launch vehicles; formerly a senior leader at SpaceX and now an influential advisor across the industry.
- Neal Milch — Business executive and entrepreneur; Chair of the Board of Trustees at Jackson Laboratory, supporting genetic research to improve human health.
- Adonis Pouroulis — Entrepreneur and mining engineer with more than three decades in natural resources and energy; leads companies focused on innovative energy technologies.
- Jason Stansell — Space enthusiast and Tulane computer science graduate from West Texas; he will dedicate his flight to his brother Kevin, who died of brain cancer in 2016.
Context and Status
Blue Origin says NS-37 will be the company's 16th crewed New Shepard mission. To date, Blue Origin has flown 86 passenger flights, representing 80 unique individuals above the Kármán line.
The launch, planned from Blue Origin's Launch Site One in West Texas, was scrubbed on the scheduled day because of a technical problem identified during terminal count checks. The company has said the flight will be rescheduled to a later date.
Benthaus told ABC News she is eager to participate and proud to show that "wheelchair users can go on a suborbital flight," and that she is grateful for Blue Origin's support.
This mission is notable both for its accessibility milestone and for demonstrating Blue Origin's continuing use of reusable suborbital vehicles to offer short-duration human spaceflight experiences.
