Virgin Galactic earns FAA approval to fly humans to space

Virgin Galactic said Friday that it had received Federal Aviation Administration approval to fly humans to space.

Virgin Galactic, the private spaceflight firm founded by billionaire Richard Branson, said Friday that it had received Federal Aviation Administration approval to fly humans to space. The company said that its existing commercial space transportation operator license had been upgraded to allow it to fly customers on the heels of its successful crewed test flight last May, which an extensive data review found performed all flight objectives. Virgin Galactic now hopes to launch its "first fully crewed test flight" in the coming months. "Today’s approval by the FAA of our full commercial launch license, in conjunction with the success of our May 22 test flight, give us confidence as we proceed toward our first fully crewed test flight this summer," Michael Colglazier, CEO of Virgin Galactic, said in a statement.