Virgin Galactic To Launch Six-Person Spacecraft Next Year

by

Virgin Galactic‘s newest spacecraft is set to become a reality next year.

Established by Richard Branson in 2004, the space firm recently disclosed plans for their inaugural space voyage in 2026, as reported by Bloomberg. To accomplish this mission, a refurbished Delta spacecraft will be rebranded as Virgin Galactic, preparing to launch for its first suborbital journey in two years following the company’s last space trip in June 2024.

Starting this March, preparations will be underway for the Delta spacecraft, designed for civilian space travel. Unlike previous crafts carrying only four passengers, this six-seater boasts improved specifications and faster turnaround times between voyages. Ticket prices are projected at $600,000 per seat, with a whopping 700 customers already waiting in line. Virgin Galactic’s debut commercial space flight took place on the VSS Unity in June 2023, launching from New Mexico and touching down 90 minutes later. Since then, the company has successfully completed 12 such missions. For its upcoming 2026 mission, the focus will reportedly be on researching cargo before human travel.

Sir Richard Branson continues to hold his ground in the billionaire’s space competition. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX have been rivals of Branson in the race for commercial space travel. This week, Blue Origin launched the New Shepard, while SpaceX successfully completed the world’s first civilian spacewalk as part of its Polaris Dawn mission.

Read More

2025-02-28 13:25