Van Horn, Texas: German engineer Michaela Benthaus has made history by becoming the world’s first wheelchair user to travel to space, marking a significant milestone for inclusivity and accessibility in space exploration.
Benthaus, who sustained a spinal cord injury in a mountain bike accident seven years ago, pursued her long-held dream of becoming an astronaut despite her disability. Unsure whether space travel was still possible for her, she reached out online to a retired space engineer to seek guidance.
That engineer, Hans Koenigsmann, a former SpaceX manager, went on to help organise the historic mission in collaboration with Blue Origin, the space tourism company founded by Jeff Bezos. Benthaus flew alongside five other passengers on a 10-minute suborbital journey that launched from Texas.
Space is for everyone. pic.twitter.com/OUs4V2LURA
— Blue Origin (@blueorigin) December 20, 2025
The crew travelled aboard New Shepard, Blue Origin’s reusable suborbital launch vehicle, which lifted off from the company’s Texas launch site at 14:15 GMT. The spacecraft ascended just beyond the Kármán line, the widely recognised boundary of space.
Following her return to Earth, Michaela Benthaus described the experience as extraordinary in a video shared by Blue Origin. Benthaus highlighted that she enjoyed not only the view of Earth and the sensation of microgravity, but also every phase of the ascent, describing the journey upwards as particularly thrilling.
Benthaus, who works at the European Space Agency, remarked that her accident had made her ‘really, really’ aware of how inaccessible the world remains for people with disabilities. During the mission, Benthaus independently transferred from her wheelchair into the capsule using a bench extending from the hatch. Koenigsmann was seated nearby and strapped in to assist with the flight if required.
Recalling their first interaction, Michaela Benthaus noted that she initially contacted Koenigsmann online, asking whether someone with her physical limitations could realistically become an astronaut after his many years working at SpaceX.
Koenigsmann stated that Michaela Benthaus’ determination inspired him to support the mission and to take part himself, adding that her drive convinced him to experience space after observing it from the outside for much of his career.
Blue Origin confirmed that additional ground support equipment was installed to help Michaela Benthaus safely enter and exit the capsule. Phil Joyce, Senior Vice President of New Shepard, remarked that the flight was especially meaningful, demonstrating that space is accessible to everyone and that the company was proud to help Benthaus fulfil her dream.
The flight marked Blue Origin’s 16th suborbital space tourism launch. The company has already flown dozens of tourists into space, including a high-profile all-female crew in April comprising pop star Katy Perry, Jeff Bezos’s fiancée Lauren Sánchez, and CBS presenter Gayle King, on a flight that lasted about 11 minutes.
The mission comes at a time of growing competition among private space companies as they vie for leadership in the rapidly expanding space tourism sector.
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