Posted on 06/16/2023 4:19:04 AM PDT by Libloather
Virgin Galactic customers who have splashed out hundreds of thousands of dollars on a trip to space are finally set to be rewarded.
The firm, founded by British billionaire Sir Richard Branson, has confirmed it will perform its first commercial flight, 'Galactic 01', at the end of June.
It has a three-day window from June 27 to launch a crew of six aboard the VSS Unity spaceplane from Spaceport America in New Mexico.
Galactic 01 will be followed by a second commercial spaceflight, 'Galactic 02,' in early August 2023, with monthly spaceflights expected thereafter.
Virgin Galactic completed its final test flight in May when it sent a crew of four company employees more than 50 miles above the surface of the Earth.
Although the company will be taking everyday members of the public who have paid the vast sums for tickets, the first of its commercial space flights will be a research mission.
Galactic 01 will carry three crew members from the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council of Italy - Angelo Landolfi, Walter Villadei and Pantaleone Carlucci – to conduct microgravity research.
They will join three Americans – pilot Frederick W. Sturckow, co-pilot Michael Masucci and safety officer Beth Moses.
'We are launching the first commercial spaceline for Earth with two dynamic products – our scientific research and private astronaut space missions,' said Michael Colglazier, CEO of Virgin Galactic.
'This next exciting chapter for Virgin Galactic has been driven by innovation, determination and a commitment to delivering an unparalleled and truly transformative customer experience.'
**SNIP**
Virgin Galactic has sold about 800 tickets for the trip over the past decade, with the initial batch going for $200,000 (£156,000) each, but they now cost $450,000 (£350,000) per person.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Soon Musk can do it cheaper.
$450K and it’s mostly for “atmosphere”. What are they serving, filet of starfish (cough)?
$450,000! Do they offer a Senior Citizen Discount 🧐
These pioneer space tourists are taking huge, immeasurable risks.
Some day, space tourism will be as safe as commercial airlines.
But, not today.
Ladies and gentlemen, please calm down. Please listen to me! I want to tell you what's going on with the ship! Thank you. We've been thrown off course just a tad.
Miss? What exactly is "a tad?"
In space terms, that's about half a million miles. The bumps you feel are asteroids smashing into the hull of the ship. Also we're flying without a navigational system and can't seem to change course. 
Need a few more gallons of LOX....
How many Frequent Flyer miles do you get?
Can I ride jump seat?
Elon Musk rockets go much higher. Bezos rocket is more sub orbital and looks disgusting.
This is his airplane like rocket and not his other ‘rocket’...
Ah heck that was Amazon rockets and not the other disgusting billionaire that has the airplane rocket.
The VSS Unity is the same design that Burt Rutan used to win the 2004 Ansari X-Prize. It’s “shuttlecock” configuration allows it to re-enter the atmosphere slow enough that there’s no need for heat shielding. And the parasite launch method is less costly (per launch) and also far less finicky about weather at launch-time.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VSS_Unity
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ansari_X_Prize
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