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The FAA has approved Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket, allowing Jeff Bezos’ space company to compete in critical national security satellite launches.
FAA Grants Blue Origin License for New Glenn Rocket Launch
On Friday, the FAA announced that Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos' rocket company, has received a commercial space launch license for the New Glenn launch, Investing.com reports.
The United States Department of Defense selected Blue Origin, SpaceX (Elon Musk's company), and the United Launch Alliance (a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed) to compete for national security space missions. This is a highly competitive arena that Blue Origin has long aspired to join.
Initial picks were made in June under a $5.6 billion initiative by the Pentagon.
New Glenn Gets Five-Year FAA Approval for Orbital Launches
According to a statement from the FAA, Blue Origin will be permitted to launch orbital flights from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station for the next five years. The initial stage of the mission, the reusable New Glenn, will land on an Atlantic Ocean barge.
Prior to the launch of any national security satellites, the United States Space Force must first certify the New Glenn.
Delays Force NASA to Shift Mars Mission
The original plan for the debut mission was to send two NASA spacecraft to Mars by the end of October. However, because of development delays, NASA had to remove New Glenn off the rocket.
On the contrary, New Glenn will be launching Blue Ring-related technologies, a business line that will provide the Pentagon with maneuverable spacecraft.
SpaceX Stays Ahead with Starship Testing
SpaceX is now testing its next-generation rocket, Starship, which is supposed to be totally reusable. The company has already dominated the launch sector with its partially reusable Falcon 9 rocket.
During a flight test in October, the towering first-stage booster of Starship successfully returned to its launch pad in Texas from the edge of space for the first time.
In contrast, Blue Origin's massive New Glenn rocket has been difficult to commercialize. It hired Dave Limp, a veteran at Amazon, in December of last year to speed up construction of the New Glenn rocket.
