Galactic 01 will carry three people from the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council of Italy under a contract signed between Virgin Galactic and the Italian Air Force in 2019. These three individuals will conduct microgravity research during the flight.
The crew will consist of Commander Michael Masucci, Pilot Nicola Pecile, and Colin Bennett, who was responsible for training the Italian participants and will be the experience supervisor. The passengers will be Colonel Walter Villadei, responsible for the Virtute 1 mission, and Lieutenant Colonel Angelo Landolfi and Pantaleone Carlucci.
Galactic 02 will be the first flight with individuals who have directly booked their seats with Virgin Galactic. We don't know the exact amount they paid, but the current price for each seat is $450,000. The names of the passengers are not yet known.
Both flights will see the VSS Unity reach an altitude exceeding 80 kilometers, which is considered space by NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration of the United States. However, according to the International Aeronautical Federation, the space boundary is set at 100 kilometers. Hence the use of quotation marks around "to space."
Unlike the flight on May 25, where the functionality of the SpaceShipTwo VSS Unity was validated after nearly two years of maintenance and improvements, these launches can be followed live on the company's website. The Galactic 01 flight will be on Thursday, the 29th, starting at 17:00 Spanish Peninsula time (UTC +2).
The question now is whether the start of their commercial operations, assuming everything goes well, will be enough to lift the company out of its precarious situation. The project is led by billionaire Richard Branson.
The First Passenger Space Flight Has a Date and Price
Suborbital flight airline Virgin Galactic has confirmed the dates for its first commercial space flight missions.
Virgin Galactic, the suborbital flight airline owned by British billionaire Richard Branson, has confirmed that it will launch its first mission for commercial space flights open to the public between June 27 and 30, at a "modest" price of $450,000 ($412,000 €). The first tickets, sold in pre-sales, had a price of $200,000 ($183,000 €).
The mission called Galactic 01 will have scientific purposes and will carry three members of the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council of the same European country, who will conduct research on microgravity.
Although not the first mission per se, Galactic 01 will inaugurate a series of flights that will be launched monthly starting in August, when the launch of Galactic 02 with private "astronauts" will continue.
THIS SUMMER: Virgin Galactic's First Commercial Space Flights
"We are launching the first commercial space line for Earth with two dynamic products: our scientific research and private astronaut space missions," says Michael Colglazier, CEO of the company.
The launch window for the Virgin Space Ship Unity is three days. The first attempt will be made on June 27, but if the weather conditions are unfavorable, it will be tried again in the following three days.
The company stated, "Virgin Galactic's team and vehicles are ready to take the first customers of the company to space, having successfully completed the Unit.
The company stated, "Virgin Galactic's team and vehicles are ready to take the first customers of the company to space, having successfully completed the Unit 25 spaceflight and subsequent routine vehicle analyses and reviews."
The successful completion of the Unit 25 spaceflight marked a significant milestone for Virgin Galactic. It demonstrated the capability and reliability of the Virgin Space Ship Unity, paving the way for the upcoming commercial flights.
With the launch of Galactic 01 and Galactic 02, Virgin Galactic aims to fulfill its vision of making space travel accessible to a wider audience. These flights represent a major step forward in the commercialization of space tourism and the realization of Richard Branson's ambitious plans.
As the launch dates draw near, anticipation and excitement are building among both the scientific community and space enthusiasts. The world will be watching closely as Virgin Galactic ventures into a new era of commercial space travel.