Blue Origin, the space rocket company owned by Jeff Bezos, could be facing further delays in resuming commercial flights after it failed to publicly disclose the explosion of one of its rockets last month.
The startup has been forced to press pause on rocket launches after it aborted a mission mid-flight in September.
As it works towards resuming flights, one of its rocket engines blew up at its West Texas testing facility on 30 June, CNBC reported, citing anonymous sources.
But rather than delays for Blue Origin it seems the explosion will hit a sector peer, as the engine was scheduled to be shipped to customer United Launch Alliance (ULA) and used for its second Vulcan rocket launch.
Blue Origin has now confirmed the accident, stating that its team “ran into an issue while testing Vulcan’s Flight Engine 3.”
ULA is a space rocket joint venture between Boeing (NYSE:BA) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT).
The spokesperson added: “No personnel were injured and we are currently assessing root cause... We already have proximate cause and are working on remedial actions.”
Earlier last month, Blue Origin boss Bob Smith said the company's New Shepard rocket would be ready to resume flights within the "next few weeks" but that approval would be needed from the Federal Aviation Administration.
This was days after the Bezos-owned company won a US$3.4bn contract with Nasa to develop a moon lander vehicle as part of the Artemis missions, with a first demonstration model due to be launched in 2029.
Blue Origin is also working on a new heavy lift orbital rocket, New Glenn, in preparation for a first flight in 2024, which has also been delayed by many years.
The company recently said it is searching for a site to build a launch facility outside the US, with the hunt extending to potential new partnerships and acquisitions in Europe, Smith told the Financial Times this month.
He said the search was at an early stage.