The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has completed its investigation into the September 2022 mishap involving Blue Origin’s New Shepard suborbital rocket. During that unmanned research flight, the reusable first-stage booster encountered a serious problem 65 seconds after launch, causing it to crash down to Earth. Fortunately, the capsule’s emergency escape system activated, allowing it to land safely with parachutes and all 36 scientific payloads intact.
Blue Origin conducted a thorough study with oversight from the FAA and input from the National Transportation Safety Board as well as NASA’s Flight Opportunities Program and Commercial Crew Office. Blue Origin disclosed in March that the catastrophe was caused by a “thermo-structural failure” in the engine’s nozzle, which powers New Shepard’s first stage. This judgment is supported by the FAA’s final report. The September mishap was caused by a “structural failure of an engine nozzle caused by higher-than-expected engine operating temperatures,” according to the FAA.
The FAA has issued Blue Origin with a list of 21 remedial steps
To avoid a repeat of the incident, the FAA has issued Blue Origin with a list of 21 remedial steps. These efforts include “redesign of engine and nozzle components to improve structural performance during operation, as well as organizational changes,” according to the FAA. Blue Origin “must implement” all corrective actions affecting public safety and acquire a license modification from the FAA resolving all safety and other applicable regulatory criteria before resuming New Shepard launches.
In response, Blue Origin posted on X saying “We’ve received the FAA’s letter and plan to fly soon.” The specific organizational changes mandated by the FAA report, however, remain uncertain, as the report is not publicly available due to “sensitive export control information.” Separately, Blue Origin recently shared that CEO Bob Smith will step down in December, with Amazon executive Dave Limp taking his place. Both Amazon and Blue Origin were founded by Jeff Bezos.
The September 2022 mission was New Shepard’s 23rd total launch, with six of those flights transporting passengers. While New Shepard has been suspended, Virgin Galactic, its major competitor in the suborbital space tourism industry, has successfully launched four crewed trips using its VSS Unity space aircraft. Virgin Galactic is getting ready for its Galactic 04 commercial spaceflight on October 5.