GoKawiilVirgin Galactic names first Delta-class spaceplane 'Apeiron'
Virgin Galactic unveiled the name of its first next-generation Delta-class suborbital spacecraft, Apeiron, chosen through a public vote. The announcement comes as the US has gone roughly 10 months without a commercial space tourism flight, following the retirement of Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity in mid-2024, the pause of Blue Origin's New Shepard program, and SpaceX winding down its free-flying Crew Dragon missions.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The naming suggests Virgin Galactic is advancing toward its long-delayed goal of fielding Delta-class vehicles, though the company had previously targeted 2026 for two ships in service and has yet to fly one. With Blue Origin's engineering focus shifting to New Glenn and Blue Moon, and SpaceX's Dragon nearing retirement without a clear human-rated Starship timeline, Virgin Galactic's progress could determine whether US space tourism resumes at all in the near term.
- US commercial space tourism flights have stopped for about 10 months
- Virgin Galactic named its first Delta-class spacecraft Apeiron via public vote
- Blue Origin and SpaceX have each shifted focus away from tourist flights
Source: arstechnica.com, 2026-10-28
Published there as: “The last, best hope for space tourism just rolled onto a runway in Arizona”
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