The first manned flight of the New Shepherd rocket by Blue Origin, a spaceflight company founded by Jeff Bezos, is scheduled for next Tuesday. Along with the crew, there are four available passenger seats: one for Bezos, one for his brother Mark, one for aviator Wally Funk, and one additional seat. This extra seat was auctioned off at a charity event in June, with the winning bid reaching $28 million. Surprisingly, the winning bidder has decided to forfeit their seat due to “scheduling conflicts.” Despite this, as a token of appreciation, Blue Origin has promised a future seat on a different mission for the anonymous bidder.
While the exact reason for the bidder’s withdrawal remains ambiguous, some speculate it could be related to the risks associated with space travel. Statistics indicate that about 1% of manned spaceflights result in fatal accidents, making it significantly more dangerous than traveling on commercial airlines, according to aviation experts.
An 18-year-old from the Netherlands is now set to be the youngest person to travel to space on Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket launch following the withdrawal of the original $28 million bidder due to scheduling conflicts.
— The New York Times (@nytimes) July 15, 2021
Replacing the anonymous bidder, 18-year-old Oliver Daemen, has been granted the fourth seat for the upcoming flight. Oliver’s father, Joes Daemen, the CEO of Somerset Capital Partners, secured this opportunity for his son by paying an undisclosed amount, presumably substantial, to secure a place on the waiting list.
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