Branson to Launch First Private Spaceflight Tape

On the 11th, Richard Branson, Chairman of Virgin Group, and the pilot team who will board the spacecraft

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] Richard Branson, chairman of Virgin Group, is scheduled to take off into space at 7:30 a.m. local time (11:30 p.m. Korean time) on the 11th from the Spaceport America space center in New Mexico, USA. Branson will board the manned space system "SpaceshipTwo" developed by Virgin Galactic.

The spacecraft "Unity," which Branson will board, will carry a total of six people including Branson and two Virgin Galactic pilots. It will be launched aboard the mothership "Eve." When Eve reaches an altitude of 16 km with Unity suspended beneath its fuselage, Unity will separate from the mothership and fly into space again.

The spaceflight time is about 15 minutes from the moment Unity separates from the mothership until it lands on the runway. The maximum altitude is expected to be about 89 km above the ground. The total flight duration is expected to be around 90 minutes.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is scheduled to travel to space on the 20th, and SpaceX, founded by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, plans to conduct an orbital flight carrying civilians around the Earth in September.

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