Technology
Richard Branson Virgin Galactic ‘weeks’ from space launch, Bezos waits
- Richard Branson previously said he was “months” away from
launching Virgin Galactic’s first rocket into space — on Tuesday
he said it will happen within “weeks.” - He told CNBC that his team are “more than tantalizingly
close” to a launch. -
Branson wants to put himself into space as soon as
possible too, and says he will be onboard one of his rockets
within “months.” -
Virgin Galactic is “neck and neck” with Blue Origin, run
by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, to provide the first commercial
spaceflight, Branson said in May.
Virgin Galactic founder Sir Richard Branson says his team are
only “weeks, not months” away from putting their first rocket in
space — and Galactic are “neck and neck” with Jeff Bezos’ Blue
Origin program for the first commercial spaceflight.
Speaking to CNBC on Tuesday Branson said his project
was “more than tantalizingly close” to launching and
he will be putting people in space not too long after
that.
“So we have got a very, very exciting couple of months
ahead,”he said.
Branson said in May that Virgin Galactic and
Bezos’ Blue Origin were tied in the race for the first
commercial spaceflight.
Talking to the BBC at that time, Branson said: “I think we’re
both neck and neck as to who will put people into space first.
We’re talking about months away, not years away — so it’s close.”
At the time Branson added that he hoped to become an astronaut
within a year with Virgin Galactic. But Branson
improved that prediction on Tuesday to “months, not years” until
he will personally be in space.
When asked about consumer demand for space travel, he told
CNBC: “I think the market for people who would love to
become astronauts and go to space is gigantic. And it is up to us
to produce as many spaceships as we can to cater with that
demand.”
Branson is often criticised for over-estimating his
project’s launch dates, and has been delayed many times before,
Business Insider reported.
One ticket on the Virgin Galactic project costs around
$250,000.
-
Business7 days ago
Lordstown Motors’ ousted CEO settles with SEC for misleading investors
-
Business6 days ago
Apple sued, Microsoft’s AI ambitions and Nvidia’s surprises
-
Business5 days ago
TechCrunch Mobility: The wheels are starting to come off the Fisker EV bus
-
Entertainment4 days ago
Amazon Big Spring Sale 2024: Shop 350+ deals on Apple, robot vacuums, security cameras, more
-
Business4 days ago
Maju Kuruvilla is out as CEO of one-click checkout company Bolt
-
Entertainment3 days ago
Where’s the AI in these ‘AI-powered’ products for your home?
-
Entertainment4 days ago
Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024): The MacBook Pro of gaming laptops
-
Entertainment6 days ago
Amazon’s Big Spring Sale 2024: Shop 340+ deals on Apple, robot vacuums, security cameras, more