The next phase of Richard Branson’s private space company, Virgin Galactic, has been announced with news that budding astronauts can buy a ticket on an upcoming flight for a snip at around £330.000.
Lifting off from Spaceport America in New Mexico, Virgin plans to send its first customers into space by the end of 2022. There are 700 'Future Astronauts' currently on a waiting list, some of whom have been waiting more than a decade.
'We plan to have our first 1,000 customers on board at the start of commercial service later this year, providing an incredibly strong foundation as we begin regular operations and scale our fleet,' said CEO Michael Colglazier.
Branson won the billionaire space race battle in Summer 2021 after his space plane Unity pipped Amazon’s Jeff Bezos Blue Origin rocket, but the Virgin vehicle was grounded for a period by the US Federal Aviation Administration as they investigated an unplanned deviations from the scheduled flight path.
If you are interested in joining the 62 mile high club you will have to lay down a £100,000 deposit. You can register your interest in flying with Virgin Galactic here
