CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is shipping his space business to Florida.
At a news conference Tuesday, Bezos announced that his Blue Origin space company will build rockets and launch them into orbit from Cape Canaveral Air Force Base.
"We don't think there are any shortcuts to space. You have to do it methodically. You have to be disciplined about it. You put one foot in front of the other and you make real progress," Bezos said.
Raw: News conference on Blue Origin space company
His company's ultimate goal: a sustainable, low-cost, safe way to get off this planet.
"We've been working on the orbital vehicle for more than three years already," Bezos said.
The vehicles will be built at a new $200 million manufacturing facility that will bring about 330 new jobs to the Space Coast.
"The announcement is a game changer for the Cape, and it marks a future where we're not just launching things, we're now building the things we launch," Space Florida President and CEO Frank DiBello said.
Blue Origin's new operation will take flight from launch complex 36.
During its four decades of service, 145 launches thundered into space from the site. The last launch from the site was 10 years ago.
Bezos said the pad could support a Blue Origin launch by the end of the decade.
"It's going to be for payloads, but also for humans. Our ultimate vision is millions of people working and living in space," Bezos said.
Bezos said he plans to send up science payloads and people, including space tourists. He said he wants to ride one of his own spacecraft into orbit one day.
Blue Origin is already testing its suborbital rockets from a remote part of Texas. The first test flight was in April.
Bezos said there is still a lot of work ahead if the company is to be ready for launch by the end of the decade.
"Our motto at Blue Origin is 'Gradatim ferociter,' (which means) stepby step, ferociously," Bezos said.
Origin is based in Kent, Washington.
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