Virgin Galactic got a fiscal boost today as Boeing announced that it is investing US$20 million in the commercial spaceflight company. Virgin Galactic went public in July 2019 and has amassed $1 million in capital as part of its effort to develop a suborbital spaceplane fleet to carry paying passengers and commercial payloads.
According to Boeing, the new investment that's being offered in exchange for shares in Virgin Galactic will be closed during the fourth quarter of 2019. The stated goal is to combine Virgin Galactic's manufacturing and development infrastructure that it's used to design, build, and test spaceplanes and motherships with Boeing's decades-long experience since the days of the Apollo program that includes being the prime contractor for the International Space Station (ISS) and the manned Starliner capsule.
"Boeing's strategic investment facilitates our effort to drive the commercialization of space and broaden consumer access to safe, efficient, and environmentally responsible new forms of transportation," says Brian Schettler, senior managing director of Boeing HorizonX Ventures. "Our work with Virgin Galactic and others will help unlock the future of space travel and high-speed mobility."
Source: Boeing