Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin rocket company has kicked off an auction for a seat on the company's first crew space flight, a landmark moment in a competition to usher in a new era of private commercial space travel.Blue Origin said there would be more crewed flights before the end of the yearBlue Origin said it would offer one seat on the first flight to the winning bidder of a five-week online auction, the proceeds of which would be donated to the space firm's foundation.
After its first flight in July, Ms Cornell said Blue Origin would have "a couple more" crewed flights before the end of the year. Reuters reported in 2018 that Blue Origin was planning to charge passengers at least $200,000 for the ride, based on an appraisal of rival plans from billionaire Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc and other considerations, though its thinking may have changed.Wednesday's announcement follows years of testing and development work that has included delays.