William Shatner Lifts Off. Blue Origin. 9:50 A.M. CT -- October 13, 2021

Captain Kirk / William Shatner lifts off. Blue Origin. Four crew members. Second such flight. Watching live on CNBC. 

Two paying flight crew; one Blue Origin executive; William Shatner. 

Projected: an eleven-minute flight. Several minutes of weightlessness.

I strongly disagree with those who say this is simply an "ego trip" -- no pun intended -- for the rich and famous. Every launch provides:

• confidence in the process;
• experience, lessons learned;
• excitement for tens of thousands of elementary students;

These launches are not without significant risk, and yet these men and women take that risk. 

Has commercial / private flight to space moved more quickly that commercial air flight pioneered by the Wright Bros? I don't know but it seems so.

"Astronauts" will soon be allowed to lower their tray tables, unbuckle their seat belts, and move freely through the cabin. 

Booster rocket now beginning its controlled recovery.

The booster has just landed ... upright....it's fourth trip to space and back.

The booster remains upright. 

That was absolutely scary.  And no one board. But still scary.

Capsule now with parachutes deployed.

We'll soon see how the sudden stop on earth affects a 90-year old person.

Jeff Bezos needs to put the Amazon swoosh on the parachutes.

Capsule has just landed, 10:00 a.m. CT. It looks like about a ten-minute flight.

Live video by drone.

Truly incredible.  

It will take a few minutes for ground support vehicles to reach the landing site. Helicopter on scene. All four passengers / crew members have given thumbs up.

Waiting to see make / model of first SUV ground support vehicle. 

Could it be the CyberTruck? LOL.

Second vehicle in trail now arriving.

All crew members walk out on their own. William Shatner looked more stable / less shaky than I would have looked. LOL.