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Virgin Galactic Unveils a Shiny New Spaceplane for the Ultra-Rich to Almost Reach Space

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Virgin Galactic Unveils a Shiny New Spaceplane for the Ultra-Rich to Almost Reach Space

For those who have run out of ways to spend their money on Earth, Virgin Galactic has another option: a trip to the edge of space. The company’s new spaceplane is the latest addition to its ambitious space tourism venture, offering passengers brief moments of weightlessness and a spectacular view of Earth from above.

This week, Virgin Galactic unveiled its new spaceplane, named Apeiron, with plans to restart commercial space tourism flights in the second quarter of 2027. The vehicle was flown, attached beneath the company’s Eve mothership, from the company’s Spaceship Factory in Arizona to its base of operations in New Mexico, where it will undergo preparations before beginning a series of test flights.

Earlier this year, the company began selling a limited number of tickets for its 90-minute commercial flights, each priced at a whopping $750,000. With its next-generation vehicle at its new home, Virgin is now moving over 100 ticket holders into an initial phase of flight readiness, with more expected to follow on a rolling basis.

Virgin’s first Delta-class spaceship is meant to replace the company’s earlier model, VSS Unity, which flew passengers on seven suborbital trips between 2023 and 2024. After its final crew touched down in June 2024, the space venture halted flights in an effort to cut cost and focus on developing its next-generation spaceplane.

Compared to its predecessor, Apeiron is larger and able to carry six passengers rather than Unity’s four-person capacity. That gives Virgin two extra paying seats per trip.



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