House panel seeks briefing on FAA Blue Origin probe

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chair of a subcommittee overseeing space issues and a top Republican asked the Federal Aviation Administration for a briefing on the investigation into the booster failure on Monday by Blue Origin’s New Shepard-23.

The rocket from Jeff Bezos' space company failed mid-flight shortly after liftoff, aborting its cargo capsule to safety before crashing into the Texas desert.

House Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics chair Don Beyer, a Democrat, and Representative Brian Babin, a Republican, in a letter asked the FAA to outline the "timetable for the NS-23 anomaly investigation, the root cause of the failure once determined, and plans to ensure that actions to address the root cause or causes are completed."

(Reporting by David Shepardson)