Virgin Galactic‘s CEO Michael Colglazier has told shareholders the company will be a powerhouse in space travel, despite reporting a net loss of US$84 million in Q1 2024.
In the latest Earnings Update announced in the US this morning, Virgin Galactic flagged that it expects the first spaceflight of the new ‘Delta’ class SpaceShip will commence in the Northern summer of 2026, while commercial (private Astronaut) spaceflights will begin by the autumn of 2026.
Virgin Galactic is also anticipating reopening the sale of seats on its spaceships to Future Astronauts in Q1 of 2026.
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“The first quarter demonstrated strong progress advancing the build of our new SpaceShips and keeping pace with our plans to begin commercial spaceflight in 2026,” Colglazier said.
“The assets being built as we march through our pre-revenue phase are tremendous, and we expect them to open up a powerful and profitable business model that will benefit from an industry-leading cost structure, fixed-cost leverage as we scale, and an unparalleled customer experience,” Colglazier said.
Revenue for the first quarter was US$0.5 million (down from US$2 million last year) due to the pause in commercial spaceflights, as Virgin Galactic opted to focus on ramping up production of its larger space vehicle that accommodates up to six paying passengers, versus four.The company’s net loss of US$84m from January to March was down from US$102m compared to Q1 2024, primarily due to lower operating expenses.
Meanwhile, Virgin Galactic has released a new video presented by the President of Virgin Galactic’s Spaceline, that showcases some of the recent milestones in the new production facility where the Delta Class Spaceships will be constructed. View the view on the link above.
Virgin Galactic has a backlog of some 700 Future Astronauts on its books. The most recent cost for a seat into space with Virgin Galactic was US$600,000.
