- Virgin Galactic completed its first crewed space flight on Saturday, which CEO Michael Colglazier said was a “major step forward for both Virgin Galactic and human spaceflight in New Mexico”
- Virgin’s VMS Eve carrier was launched from Spaceport America in New Mexico with the Unity spaceship onboard
- The company has accepted some 600 reservations for space flight, at a cost of $250,000 per seat for tourists
LAS CRUCES, New Mexico: Virgin Galactic has completed its first crewed space flight.
“It was picture-perfect,” Virgin Galactic CEO Michael Colglazier told The Verge after the flight was completed. “We’re going to go through the data deeply and thoroughly, as we always do.”
In a statement, Colglazier called the flight a “major step forward for both Virgin Galactic and human spaceflight in New Mexico,” which had never hosted a crewed test mission to space before the Saturday launch.
The VSS Unity spacecraft reached an altitude of more than 44,000 feet before gliding back to Earth.
Virgin’s VMS Eve carrier was launched from Spaceport America in New Mexico with the Unity spaceship onboard.
Saturday’s launch was the latest step toward Virgin Galactic developing a space tourism industry.
The company has accepted some 600 reservations for space flights, at a cost of $250,000 per seat for tourists.
Also, this was the first spaceflight from New Mexico.
