Virgin Galactic Holdings SPCE said it plans to begin offering space-tourism flights near the end of this month, marking a significant breakthrough for the nearly 20-year-old space-travel company founded by Richard Branson. Shares jumped 10.6% after hours on the news. The first flight, named Galactic 01, is set to take off between June 27 and June 30. Virgin is planning the second, Galactic 02, for launch in early August, with monthly flights to follow. Galactic 01’s journey will be for scientific purposes, and will carry three crew members from Italy’s air force and the National Research Council of Italy looking to conduct research on microgravity, Virgin said. The second flight will be available to “private astronauts,” the company said. The announcement follows Virgin’s completion of its Unity 25 spaceflight.
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