There is an outlook that the launchpad damaged by an explosion during a test of Blue Origin's heavy rocket "New Glenn" could be restored around 2028.
Jared Isaacman, Director General of NASA, said in an interview with CNBC on the 1st (local time), "It appears the launchpad restoration will require considerable time," adding, "Even if work proceeds as quickly as possible, we expect 2028 as the restoration point."
Director General Isaacman said he reached this judgment after reviewing past cases in the history of crewed spaceflight of building new launchpads or rebuilding existing ones. He emphasized that pinpointing the exact problem comes first, saying the cause analysis of the accident, the restoration of the launchpad, and related technical support must proceed together.
The accident occurred on the 28th (local time) during a static fire test of the New Glenn rocket at the Cape Canaveral launchpad in Florida, United States. It was reported that the explosion caused serious damage not only to the rocket but also to the launchpad.
Blue Origin currently operates only one launchpad for New Glenn. Therefore, New Glenn launches will effectively be halted until that launchpad is restored or a replacement facility is prepared. The company suggested the launchpad at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California as an alternative, but that facility is also not yet completed.
If the launchpad gap is prolonged, NASA's Artemis program may also face inevitable schedule adjustments. Director General Isaacman said, "With Blue Origin's launchpad becoming difficult to use, a plan to use a SpaceX rocket for launching the uncrewed lunar lander under the Artemis program could be considered." As an alternative, SpaceX's heavy launcher "Falcon Heavy" was mentioned.
He said, "In practice, private companies capable of operating heavy launch vehicles are effectively limited to SpaceX and Blue Origin," adding, "One of them has lost a launchpad."