Virgin Galactic sets Christmas Day as the day space tourism begins

Virgin Galactic intends to make the world's first commercial spaceflight, carrying paying passengers, on Christmas Day, says Sir Richard Branson. "I will be going up on the first flight, which I hope will be about December 25th of this year" said the Virgin-branding billionaire. Branson hopes to bring his family along for the ride, which will last for two and a half hours and include four minutes of weightlessness as the eight-seater shuttle nudges the edge of space at some 360,000 feet above the Earth's surface. Virgin Galactic has advised also its agents that from Saturday June 1st, a ticket to fly will increase from $200,000 to $250,000.