Branson Unveils First Commercial Spaceship

Sir Richard Branson unveiled the world’s first ever passenger shuttle for commercial use which he says he hopes to see orbit in space as a tourist attraction. The Virgin Galactic Spaceship Two will be able to transport passengers past Earth’s atmosphere and into space as soon as 2011.

The first flight will be taken by Sir Branson himself accompanied by his family complete with his father, 92. Others have already begun booking for space trips beyond Earth’s atmosphere including celebrities such as Stephen Hawking.

SpaceShip Two will begin undergoing test missions sometime next year and has a capacity for six passengers at a time, along with two pilots. At least 300 potential passengers have already shelled out $200,000 (£121,500) per ticket in order to reserve a spot on upcoming commercial flights.
Branson and Burt Rutan, a famous aviation designer, teamed up for the project which is based on Rutan’s original concept model, SpaceShip One. In 2004, the model design SpaceShip One won the Ansari X prize when it was the first private aircraft to orbit outside of Earth’s atmosphere.

The sequel model is twice the size of the award winning SpaceShip One, and enables for larger windows for better views from inside the ship. The spaceship is transported into space via a mothership, named White Knight Two, which released the aircraft at 50,000ft.

The total tour is expected to last around two hours and will also allow guests to experience a five minute period of weightlessness. Sir Richard announced that it will be a historic day and that he is confident the journey will be completely safe.