Virgin Galactic says its latest tranche of spaceflight reservations sold out ahead of schedule and was oversubscribed at $750,000 per seat, adding more than $50 million to expected future spaceflight revenue. The company plans to open another tranche at a higher price later this fall, extending a pricing ladder that previously included $600,000 and $450,000 seats.
The demand milestone came alongside a schedule delay. Virgin Galactic moved the first commercial flight of its new Delta-class spacecraft from the fourth quarter of 2026 to February 2027, citing additional time for avionics and systems installation. The company expects to begin flight testing with a captive-carry mission in October 2026, while the second Delta spacecraft is planned to join the fleet in March 2027.
The company has not reached space since June 2024, after retiring its VSS Unity vehicle following seven operational customer-carrying flights. The Delta spacecraft are designed to carry six passengers, launch from beneath a carrier aircraft and support a substantially higher flight rate than Unity.
Virgin Galactic’s financial results show why ticket demand has not yet resolved its funding challenge. Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled $286 million at June 30, including $134 million in gross proceeds from an at-the-market stock offering.
It also reduced debt through stock-based transactions, cutting $40. 5 million from notes due in 2028 and exchanging $52. 5 million of notes due in 2027 for shares and warrants.
Management continues to forecast positive quarterly cash flow during 2027. It expects the second Delta spacecraft to help lift operations to at least 10 spaceflights per month by the end of the second quarter of 2027, but that target depends on completing testing, installations and the transition into commercial service. The immediate test for the business is whether the new spacecraft can begin flying while the company continues funding substantial development and operating costs.