Historic First: Wheelchair User Flies into Space on Blue Origin Flight

On December 20, 2025, space tourism reached a new milestone: Michaela Benthaus became the first wheelchair user to blast past the Karman line on Blue Origin’s New Shepard suborbital flight. 🚀🌌

The German aerospace and mechatronics engineer at the European Space Agency, who uses a wheelchair after a mountain biking accident, boarded the automated rocket at 8:15 a.m. local time (1415 GMT) in western Texas. The roughly 10-minute journey sent her capsule above 100 kilometers—the internationally recognized edge of space—before it gently parachuted back to the desert floor.

“After my accident, I really, really figured out how inaccessible our world still is,” Benthaus said in a video released by the company. “If we want to be an inclusive society, we should be inclusive in every part, and not only in the parts we like to be.” 👩‍🦽

As private space travel expands, this landmark event shines a spotlight on making space accessible for people with disabilities. Benthaus hopes her flight will inspire future missions to prioritize inclusion and design. ✨

For the next generation of space explorers and dreamers, her journey shows that determination and innovation can turn barriers into launchpads. The universe is waiting! 🌍🚀

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Wheelchair user flies into space, a historic first

cgtn.com