KENT, Wash.—Amid the recent controversy surrounding billionaire spaceflights, Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos said his space tourism company will be offering—just in time for the holidays—BOGO Groupons for suborbital flight tickets, which cost $28 million each. The former Amazon CEO, who is one of the world’s wealthiest people, said he sympathized with those who viewed his and fellow billionaire Richard Branson’s recent rides into space as the zenith of extravagance. He insisted that the buy-one, get-one-free deal would be a wonderful gift for, as an example, a starry-eyed couple who wanted to get each other something that sparkles a little different this year. Bezos neither confirmed nor denied that his example was a jab at Tom Hanks, who said during an appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on November 2 that he had declined an invitation to fly on Blue Origin’s New Shepard vehicle because he wasn’t about to pay $28 million to do so. Bezos added that there is no maximum to how many Groupons a person can purchase but that the offer would be available for a limited time only. He also proudly pointed out that because the deal is redeemed virtually, it is an ideal gift idea during the current shipping and supply-chain problems.
