NASA’s Sean Duffy wants to open Artemis III to other companies

NATIONWIDE — Citing that SpaceX is behind schedule with its Starship that will be used for the Artemis III mission, NASA acting Administrator Sean Duffy said on Monday that the U.S. space agency is considering Blue Origin and other companies to handle the task.

On his X account, Duffy posted what he wants and also included his interview on CNBC.

“Now, SpaceX had the contract for Artemis III. By the way, I love SpaceX and it’s an amazing company, but the problem is, they are behind. They pushed their timelines out and we are in a race against China. The president and I want to get to the moon in this president’s term. So, I’m going to open up the contract and I’m going let other space companies compete with SpaceX, like Blue Origin. Whatever one gets us there first to the moon, we are going to take. If SpaceX is behind and Blue Origin can do it before them, good on Blue Origin,” he said.

In his X post, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Duffy typed, “@NASA is opening up HLS production to Blue Origin and other great American companies.”

He did not name those other companies.

Lockheed Martin has the contract for NASA’s Orion spacecraft and Boeing holds the contract for the Space Launch System’s rocket core stages. Other U.S. companies have contracts for certain components of the SLS and Orion.

Duffy’s words of beating China to the moon are echoes of what others in the administration have said.

During a media tour of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket facility in Florida in September, U.S. Rep. Mike Haridopolos said that it was important for NASA to land on the moon before China. The communist country plans to land its citizens on the moon in 2030, while the Artemis III is set in 2027.

At the end of the tour, Spectrum News asked Haridopolos, who is the chairman of the U.S. Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee, if NASA has any backup plans if Starship was behind schedule.

He said the concern at that time is Artemis II, which will see four astronauts orbit around the moon in 2026 in NASA’s Space Launch System rocket and the Orion spacecraft.

The Blue Moon is slated for the Artemis V mission, which originally was going to be the lunar lander’s first crewed flight, stated NASA.

Spectrum News reached out to NASA, Blue Origin and SpaceX for comment and is waiting for a response.

In the last two test flights, SpaceX has been pleased with Starship’s results during those launches, with the latest one, test 11, happening last week.

However, SpaceX has seen three failed test flights this year in test flights 07, 08, and 09.