The Facts
On Thursday, Virgin Galactic announced it had scheduled its first commercial space flight between June 27 and 30.
The space tourism company owned by Richard Branson said Galactic 01 would carry three crew members from the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council of Italy to study microgravity.
The Spin
Narrative A
It’s been a rocky road for Virgin Galactic, but things are finally looking up, and the company is about to fulfill its lofty goals. The pandemic delayed the company’s ability to get its commercial space flights up and running, but it looks like it can now fulfill the dreams of hundreds of passengers.
Narrative B
Celebrations should be saved until after these planes complete at least one space flight. Virgin Galactic has faced close calls and calamities in the past and is still far from making frequent and safe human spaceflight a reality. Moreover, Branson may be getting ahead of himself to give the impression he's winning the space race among the billionaire class.
