Unity spacecraft completes first commercial spaceflight

Virgin Galactic, founded by British billionaire Richard Branson, completed its first commercial suborbital flight. On Thursday, July 29, her Unity spacecraft with six people on board successfully took off and then returned to Earth as part of a mission Galactic 01.

The spacecraft was attached to the Eve carrier aircraft, which took off from the launch pad in New Mexico (USA). Unity separated at an altitude of about 15 kilometers, after which it continued to move due to its own engines.

As a result, he rose to a height of more than 84 kilometers, which is about 3.5 kilometers above the edge of space. Passengers were able to spend several minutes in zero gravity and see the surface of the Earth. In total, the flight lasted 14 minutes.

On board the spacecraft were two pilots, a Virgin Galactic instructor and three Italian Air Force personnel who paid for the tickets. As well as 13 research vehicles, thanks to which the crew managed to conduct several scientific experiments.

The next such flight is scheduled for August. And in the future, Virgin Galactic wants to send people into space every month. There is a demand - there are already about 800 people on the waiting list. Wherein tickets on Unity are not cheap and now cost from 450 thousand dollars (≈39 million rubles).

Recall that the company conducted the first such flight in the summer of 2021. Then Branson himself went on a flight with three tourists who received a special invitation.