Virgin Galactic hopes to use its spacecraft for intercontinental flights

Virgin Galactic is already very close to conducting the first commercial space flight. All the tests of the company's spacecraft were successful, so there seems to be no obstacles to implementing these plans. In addition to space, the leadership of Virgin Galactic hopes to use its own “shuttles” for intercontinental flights for ordinary, not “space” passengers. In general, the idea is far from new, however, only now this idea is close to realization.

Stephen Attenborough, commercial director of Virgin Galactic, said that such flights will occur much faster than a regular flight. For example, a passenger from London to Australia can get in just 2.5 hours (instead of 13 hours, on average, for a traditional flight). The flight of a new type will occur through an exit into near-Earth space, and then descent to a given point. Thus, the flight time is really reduced several times.
')
In addition, according to Attenborough, such flights will be less harmful to the environment than regular flights, since most of the journey will take place in near-Earth space, and the "exhaust" will remain there. Of course, this is a controversial issue, since rocket fuel is quite different in composition from aviation fuel, and the “exhaust” will still remain partially in the atmosphere. Nevertheless, this problem is quite possible to study and make a decision, having all the data on the current space flights of the space shuttle from Virgin Galactic on hand.

Unfortunately, Attenborough did not name the date of such a flight. It goes without saying that such flights, in any case, at the very beginning, will be very expensive, especially considering that the Spaceship Two accommodates only six passengers. But it may well be that, subject to the commercial success of such flights, the price of the flight will be reduced, and the number of shuttle traders will be increased.

So far, a space ticket for passengers in the Spaceship Two costs 250,000 US dollars, so it’s worth taking a look at this price when calculating the price for a two-hour flight from London to Melbourne.

Via theverge