Virgin Galactic

[philw1776]

I'd be willing to take the opposite side of that bet. I'm pretty sure SpaceX will have a P2P service by the end of this decade. It'll be their second spin out company after Starlink...

No way is the FAA gonna let flaming LNG tankers overfly population areas this decade, and maybe not next either.
Folks in Boston had a major uproar with non-flaming LNG tankers cruising into the harbor never mind overhead.
Plus the issue of enough successful flights under their belt without "incident" to convince regulators it's only 1,000 times or so riskier than an airliner flight.

 

[Cosmacelf]

No way is the FAA gonna let flaming LNG tankers overfly population areas this decade, and maybe not next either.
Folks in Boston had a major uproar with non-flaming LNG tankers cruising into the harbor never mind overhead.

That’s a good point.

Ironically, I was recently day dreaming about what anti matter propelled rockets would be like. You’d have some sort of active magnetic containment, which means containment failure would be catastrophic depending on how much energy you were storing.

Because of this, I was thinking you’d end up restricting interstellar capable capable craft to at least earth orbit, if not even further away just for accident reasons alone.

 

[Cosmacelf]

No way is the FAA gonna let flaming LNG tankers overfly population areas this decade, and maybe not next either.
Folks in Boston had a major uproar with non-flaming LNG tankers cruising into the harbor never mind overhead.
Plus the issue of enough successful flights under their belt without "incident" to convince regulators it's only 1,000 times or so riskier than an airliner flight.

On the other hand:

“I believe we will be flying large numbers of people on Starship in five years,” she said, including point-to-point transportation between two locations on Earth, a concept SpaceX first discussed in 2017.

From: SpaceX adds to latest funding round - SpaceNews

 

[bxr140]

On the other hand:

“I believe we will be flying large numbers of people on Starship in five years,” she said, including point-to-point transportation between two locations on Earth, a concept SpaceX first discussed in 2017.

From: SpaceX adds to latest funding round - SpaceNews

I’ll take that bet and even double the timeframe on P2P. Demo Starship P2P by the end of the decade? Maybe. But no way it’s a legitimate method of transportation for anything in that timeframe.

In other news, Sir Richard sells $150M of his interest...

 

[Cosmacelf]

I’ll take that bet and even double the timeframe on P2P. Demo Starship P2P by the end of the decade? Maybe. But no way it’s a legitimate method of transportation for anything in that timeframe.

In other news, Sir Richard sells $150M of his interest...

Jesus:

Branson’s sale comes a month after Virgin Galactic Chairman Chamath Palihapitiya sold his remaining personal stake in the company. Palihapitiya told CNBC at the time that he plans to redirect the sale “into a large investment I am making towards fighting climate change,” adding that he remains “as dedicated as ever to Virgin Galactic’s team, mission and prospects.”

Chairman and founder selling huge blocks of shares. I'm sorry, but no about of BS about helping the environment papers over the fact that key investors think this is a turkey.

 

[Grendal]

Jesus:



Chairman and founder selling huge blocks of shares. I'm sorry, but no about of BS about helping the environment papers over the fact that key investors think this is a turkey.

It's certainly not worth betting money on. I don't see VG as much more than a joy ride for tourists. I also don't see where there are lots of profit to be made.

 

[ggies07]

Welp, just sold my shares....didn't want to as I was cheering for this company from the beginning, but it looks like it's going nowhere. I bought in $9, so not that bad....

 

[808?]

On May 22, 2021, Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity spaceship completed the first-ever human spaceflight from Spaceport America, New Mexico, with two pilots reaching apogee at 55.45 miles above ground. The flight is a meaningful step toward the opening of commercial space travel.

 

[Electroman]

Sorry, don't see the point. But good toy though.

 

[doug]

I mean, come on. That's still pretty awesome. Certainly a more exciting experience than a trip on BO's New Sheppard (of which I also wouldn't turn down).

I really hope VG can operate safely. Three people have already been killed during development.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Scares the pants off me. Btw, is the cabin pressurized? I guess it would have to be, but I thought it interesting that the pilots had oxygen masks.

 

[Nikxice]

The weakest link in the VG operation is likely the human factor. Not meant as a slight against the pilots. I have no doubt that a VG cockpit will be crewed by cream of the crop. But hand flying this shuttlecock back into the atmosphere will never become a routine trip around the traffic pattern. I have many concerns, here's a couple. The transition from Space into the upper atmosphere, especially passing thru the jet stream where at times the vehicle could experience some hefty wind shear. Also worrisome, successfully transitioning the airfoil for the critical glider configuration necessary for landing.

From a financial standpoint, a big issue I see with the VG ride will be achieving efficient turnaround times. The talk of eventually getting to a couple of daily flights seems like a pipe dream, reminiscent of the early buzz about the STS. This latest VG test flight is responsible for a SPCE gain of more than 50% over just a few trading days. A nice move for short term players. Although I'd really love to hear from SPCE longs to explain the path to profitability.

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

Sorry, don't see the point. But good toy though.

I feel the same way about souvenir stores and a number of other things, but they're incredibly popular.

 

[Nikxice]

Welp, just sold my shares....didn't want to as I was cheering for this company from the beginning, but it looks like it's going nowhere. I bought in $9, so not that bad....

SPCE up about 14 bucks today, reaching 55. Over the last year it's been quite a rollercoaster ride with no real news. The recent rise could be a combination of Wall Street Bets and some speculation that Branson might reach the edge of Space as early as July 4th, beating Bezos. With their lousy financials and likely initial prolonged gaps between revenue flights, it's tempting to bet against VG. Though the WSB crowd behaves so irrationally, probably a dangerous play.

 

[HVM]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1410724992644382725

https://twitter.com/x/status/1410727434530422784

 

[Grendal]

I almost posted this on both threads...but VG is going up first. So here it is:

 

[Grendal]

 

[Kimmi]

If it doesn’t orbit it’s not a spaceship.

 

[arnolddeleon]

If it doesn’t orbit it’s not a spaceship.

I'll bite, what do you call a ship that goes into space?

 

[HVM]

Today: