7/20/21 - Bezos Makes Historic Space Flight

Two crew members make history aboard Amazon founder built spacecraft.

Wally Funk made it into space.

Once approved for a defunct space program for women, and turned down for a trip aboard the space shuttle, Funk was able to reach space as a guest of Jeff Bezos.

“The noise wasn’t quite as bad, and we went right on up and I saw darkness.  I thought hought I was going to see the world but we weren’t quite high enough.”

Funk says she can’t wait to do it again.

She becomes the oldest person to ever go into space at the age of 82.  The spacecraft, Blue Origin, crossed the Karman line and the four person crew experienced four minutes of weightlessness.

The launch of New Shephard comes on the anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.  Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and three crew members took off for space aboard a fully automated craft.  Bezos says more flights are coming.

“We’re going to fly human missions twice more this year.  And what we do in the following year I’m not sure yet, we’ll figure that out and what the cadence will eventually be.”

The total time spent from launch to landing was just over 10 minutes.

Bezos was accompanied by Funk, Bezos brother Mark and Oliver Daemen, the son of a wealthy Dutch businessman.  Daeman becomes the youngest person to ever go into space at the age of 17.