Blue Origin Names Seven Advisory Board Members

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin rocket venture has appointed seven government and industry veterans to its newly formed board of advisers that will counsel the firm's leadership team on space business matters.

Blue Origin said Tuesday it established the group to provide strategic advice as the Kent, Washington-based company aims to help customers gain access to space and resources there.

The advisory board members are:

• Bill Smith, former president of Primex Technologies' aerospace division
• Charles Elachi, former director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Dan Hastings, current head of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's aeronautics and astronautics department and former U.S. Air Force chief scientist
• Heather Wilson, current president at the University of Texas-El Paso and former USAF secretary
• Kari Bingen, former deputy undersecretary for intelligence and security at the Department of Defense
• Sue Mashiko, a retired USAF major general and former deputy director of the National Reconnaissance Office
• Todd May, senior vice president of space and mission solutions at KBR's government solutions business and former director of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center