Photo by Virgin Galactic

Virgin Galactic has completed its first spaceflight this year and its 11^th overall. Interestingly, the latest flight was the first flight that all four seats aboard VSS Unity were occupied by private astronauts. The flight took place on Friday 26 Jan.

Virgin Galactic’s next mission, expected in the second quarter of 2024, will include both a researcher and private astronauts. Virgin Galactic will give more information on that mission in the near future.

“Today the incredible team at Virgin Galactic supported another successful mission and delivered an unforgettable experience for four new astronauts. The success of ‘Galactic 06’ and the Company’s other commercial spaceflights in recent months only increases our confidence in the repeatability of our product and our ability to deliver a superlative experience to our customers. With the production of our next-generation Delta-class ships underway, we look forward to expanding our flight capacity with testing expected to start next year and commercial service in 2026,” Michael Colglazier, CEO of Virgin Galactic, said in a statement.