Virgin Galactic has revealed the striking design of its new six-passenger Delta spaceship, slated for blast off in 2026.
The first look of Virgin Galactic‘s new Delta Class spaceship design has landed. Showcased via a video on August 7, the fluid, refined design heralds a new dawn for space craft.
According to space flight company, the Delta ships are being built to operate with an average turnaround time of just three days, which would mark an enormous breakthrough and would structurally change the cost of human spaceflight.
Virgin Galactic Spaceline President Mike Moses says: “Virgin Galactic is moving from a prototype to a production model of developing spaceships – shaving years off the development timeline we saw with VSS Unity. The team has hit the ground running – with important testing already underway, supporting our ability to execute key Delta production milestones.”
The Delta Class spaceships are being built to be capable of flying eight space missions per month with 12 times the monthly capacity of Virgins’s original spaceship, VSS Unity.
The new spacecraft, powered by a hybrid rocket system, will also upgrade from four passengers to six over the old spaceship.
The production timeline for Virgin Galactic’s Delta fleet remains on track for commercial service to launch in 2026, with final assembly taking place at Virgin Galactic’s new Delta facility in Phoenix, Arizona.
“Progress on our Delta Class spaceship program was substantial in Q2, with the pace of design completion accelerating and tool fabrication underway,” Michael Colglazier, CEO of Virgin Galactic, said in a statement.
“In the next month, our teams will pivot primary focus from design completion to the build and test phases of our production spaceships, which remain on track to enter commercial service in 2026.”
by Olivia Palamountain | GLOBETRENDER