Blue Origin will pause New Shepard suborbital tourist flights for at least two years to reassign resources toward developing a human lunar lander. The decision comes as Blue Origin and SpaceX compete under NASA contracts to support the Artemis program; SpaceX is currently slated to supply the Artemis III lander, targeted for no earlier than 2028. New Shepard has carried 98 people past the Kármán line since 2021, including Jeff Bezos and several celebrities.
Blue Origin Pauses New Shepard Flights to Redirect Resources Toward Lunar Lander Development
A Blue Origin New Shepard rocket lifts off from Launch Site One in West Texas north of Van Horn on March 31, 2022. - Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/Getty Images
Blue Origin announced Friday that it will suspend flights of its reusable suborbital tourism rocket, New Shepard, for at least two years to reallocate resources toward developing human lunar lander capabilities.
Since its first crewed launch in 2021, New Shepard has offered roughly 10-minute flights that reach the Kármán line — commonly defined as 62 miles (100 kilometers) above sea level — carrying tourists, wealthy customers and well-known guests on brief journeys to the edge of space.
Why Blue Origin Is Pausing Flights
In a company statement, Blue Origin said the pause is intended to "shift resources to further accelerate development of the company’s human lunar capabilities." The move comes as Blue Origin and SpaceX each hold NASA contracts to develop landers that could ferry astronauts from lunar orbit to the Moon’s surface.
Artemis Program Context And Competition
NASA currently plans to use a SpaceX lander for the Artemis III mission, the first U.S. moon landing since the Apollo era, targeted for no earlier than 2028. However, schedule risks remain: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy — who briefly served as NASA’s acting administrator — warned in October that NASA will not wait on a single supplier if timelines slip and could consider alternatives.
“If SpaceX is behind, but Blue Origin can do it before them, good on Blue Origin,” Duffy said on CNBC’s Squawk Box. “We’re not going to wait for one company. We’re going to push this forward…”
The broader political context includes pressure from some lawmakers to return U.S. astronauts to the lunar surface before China, which aims to land taikonauts on the Moon around 2030.
Leadership And Next Steps
Jared Isaacman, NASA’s newly installed administrator and a private astronaut who has flown twice on SpaceX missions, said in January that he had met with representatives from both SpaceX and Blue Origin to "understand the latest plans to accelerate NASA’s Artemis timeline." Blue Origin did not provide a specific schedule for when New Shepard flights might resume beyond the two-year minimum.
New Shepard’s Record And Passenger Details
New Shepard has flown 98 people beyond the Kármán line since 2021. Passengers have included founder Jeff Bezos, actor William Shatner, NFL personality Michael Strahan, journalist Gayle King and singer Katy Perry. Blue Origin does not publicly disclose ticket prices or how many customers hold future reservations that may now be delayed.
Blue Origin framed the pause as aligning its business priorities with the nation’s goal of a sustained lunar presence. It remains to be seen how NASA’s procurement decisions for Artemis III will shift in response to contractor progress and schedules.
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