Virgin Galactic to Launch First Commercial Spaceflight on June 27th

Virgin Galactic has announced that it is now prepared to offer its services to paying customers after years of development. The company has confirmed that its first commercial spaceflight, Galactic 01, will take place between June 27th and June 30th. The mission will carry three individuals from Italy’s Air Force and National Research Council who will conduct microgravity research. Although Virgin had previously anticipated a late June launch, it had not confirmed the exact dates until now.

The company has already planned connecting flights. Galactic 02 is expected to launch in early August and will carry a private crew. Virgin will fly monthly thereafter, although details of future missions are not yet available. At least the first two flights will be broadcast live through the company’s website.

Virgin conducted its final pre-commercial flight test, its fifth spaceflight of any kind, in late May. However, the company had numerous delays and incidents until then. The company conducted its first SpaceShipTwo test flights in 2013, but suspended its efforts after the 2014 fatal crash of the VSS Enterprise. Flight testing was only continued in VSS Unity’s gliding test at the end of 2016. The company finally reached space in 2018, but had to wait until 2021 to complete its first fully crewed space flight with founder Richard Branson. It delayed commercial service several times due to various factors, most recently a delay in upgrading the VMS Eve “mother ship” that carries the SpaceShipTwo vehicles to their launch altitude.

The debut is important for Virgin’s business. Virgin has operated at a loss for years, losing more than $500 million in 2022 alone. Commercial service won’t quickly recoup those investments even at $450,000 per ticket, but it gives the company a significant source of revenue.

This is not the start of Virgin’s space travel. In that sense, it still trails Blue Origin. Galactic 01 puts Virgin ahead of SpaceX, as the company’s Starship rocket has yet to reach space and is not expected to launch its first tourist flights to the moon until late 2024 at the earliest. While Virgin is less ambitious than Elon Musk’s operation, it is also achieving its goals faster.