The head of Amazon announced plans to invest a billion dollars annually in the creation of a launch vehicle

Amazon founder and Blue Origin CEO Jeff Bezos said he is willing to sell $1 billion worth of shares every year to invest in building his own launch vehicle. At the same time, he estimated the entire development at $2.5 billion. this . reports Reuters

According to Bezos, he will sell shares of Amazon to bring his second company Blue Origin to self-sufficiency. He noted that tests of the rocket with pilots and engineers on board will not begin until 2018.

Ultimately, as the head of Amazon noted, he would like to make space flights cheaper, “so that millions of people can live and work not on Earth.” At the moment, Bezos plans to make Blue Origin launches regular, lasting about 11 minutes. They will show the Earth to six passengers from a height of 100 kilometers.

Bezos also announced plans to build a heavy New Glenn launch vehicle capable of delivering ships and satellites into space. He admitted that his idea is similar to the tests of Elon Musk and SpaceX, but noted that their “engineering approach” is different.

Also, the founder of Blue Origin said that he does not know exactly what funds will be needed for his space program. However, he noted that “it’s a long journey that he’s happy to invest in.”

In early March, Bezos unveiled a rocket engine that will launch heavy ships into orbit. Blue Origin has been developing it since 2011 and the US plans to use it as a replacement for Russian engines.