BEIJING (AFP) – A Chinese company will launch sales of two tickets for a commercial spaceflight planned for 2027.
The tickets sold by firm Deep Blue Aerospace cost CNY1.5 million (USD211,000) and are for seats on a suborbital flight in which passengers will experience five minutes of zero gravity.
They go on sale at 6pm local time (1000GMT) during a livestream shopping event hosted by the company’s founder Huo Liang, Deep Blue announced via their WeChat account this week.
Customers must pay CNY50,000 deposit to secure the tickets.
Deep Blue Aerospace is a leader in China’s burgeoning commercial space sector, which Beijing is hoping will catch up to rivals such as Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
China made 26 commercial launches in 2023, according to state media, including LandSpace’s Zhuque-2 rocket, the world’s first methane-fuelled rocket.
Deep Blue Aerospace said it plans to develop reusable rocket technology to reduce costs.
The mission in 2027 will be suborbital, meaning passengers will reach space but not go into orbit. It will be in space for around 12 minutes, the company said.
