Gayle King compares herself to an astronaut after Blue Origin flight—Sean Duffy says no

US transportation secretary Sean Duffy said on Thursday that the all-women crew who flew to space aboard a Blue Origin craft recently were not astronauts. The remark comes amid comments by broadcast journalist Gayle King, who was part of the Blue Origin crew and compared her trip to that of Alan Shepard, the first American in space.

Responding to a post on X by Blue Origin, Duffy wrote, "The crew who flew to space this week on an automated flight by Blue Origin were brave and glam, but you cannot identify as an astronaut. They do not meet the FAA astronaut criteria ."

The U.S. commercial space industry is an inspiring project which showcases American ingenuity and exceptionalism. But the last FAA guidelines under the Commercial Space Astronaut Wings Program were clear: Crewmembers who travel into space must have “demonstrated activities during… https://t.co/n2DxpNh4Hy

— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) April 17, 2025

The transportation secretary said that, according to the federal aviation regulations (FAA) on the commercial space astronaut wings program, crewmembers who travel into space must have “demonstrated activities during flight that were essential to public safety, or contributed to human space flight safety.”

Blue Origin, in its post referred to the recent flight crew members, including celebrities, as "astronauts". It said, "We just completed our 11th human spaceflight and the 31st flight of the New Shepard program. The astronaut crew included Aisha Bowe, Amanda Nguyễn, Gayle King, Katy Perry, Kerianne Flynn, and Lauren Sánchez."


Having faced backlash on social media, King had defended her comment, saying the all-women crew was being judged differently from men who have gone to space, according to New York Post.