Virgin Galactic, a private space company that aims to realize space tourism, has launched a program (One Small Step) for customers wishing to board.
This program gives priority to ticket sales instead of asking for a refundable $1,000 deposit to bookers who want to go to space aboard Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo. Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides said in January 2014 that sales of space tour tour tickets, which were suspended after the crash, will resume within this year. It can be said that the commercial operation start date is also approaching.
Virgin Galactic has already received 603 deposits, most of which have been sold for $200,000 to $250,000. In addition, there are 8,000 online reservation registrations. However, one of the reservations, Richard Branson, did not explain in detail the reason for providing the One Small Step program. Whitesize CEO recently said there is a potential for a significant increase in the cost of boarding commercial flights from $250,000. Virgin Galactic’s net loss in the fourth quarter of 2019 increased from $46 million a year earlier to $73 million. This point cannot be considered to be related to the start of the program.
The loss is not covered by collecting $1,000 per person from those who wish to make a reservation. Perhaps the goal is to secure customers who will pay the full cost of boarding at the beginning of commercial operation. Related information can be found here .