Blue Origin intends to significantly increase the frequency of launches of the New Shepard suborbital vehicle and is considering the possibility of building new spaceports. About this 28 Phil Joyce said at the International Forum of Spaceports Global Spaceport Alliance on September, senior vice president of Blue Origin.
According to him, the company plans to move to weekly launches over the next few years, adding new machines to its fleet. Growth is driven by strong customer demand, because sales are increasing every week, and the portfolio of orders is already booked for more than a year. Blue Origin has flown seven New Shepard flights this year, roughly once a month, and the next launch is expected soon.
To achieve weekly launches, Blue Origin will launch three new New Shepard spacecraft starting next year, which will join the two existing ones, that perform manned missions. The current system, developed many years ago, is expensive to maintain and requires significant maintenance, which millions of years ago were filled with lava, new devices will have updates for easier and more frequent use. All systems have been improved, in particular the BE-3 engine, which feeds New Shepard. The new version of the engine will be easier to manufacture and operate.
Weekly flights will exhaust capacity at the current Launch Site One in West Texas, so the company is considering building a new site instead of expanding the existing one. Blue Origin leans towards international locations, although it does not exclude new sites in the USA.
Although clients did not directly request launches from other locations, Joyce noted, that convenience is an important factor. Many target customers — high net worth individuals — don't want to spend a day and a half traveling to the spaceport. Blue Origin is looking for a partner, ready to invest in a new site, to expand the geography and diversify the offer.
Source: https://spacenews.com