Why Virgin Galactic Shouldn't Worry About Elon Musk's SpaceX
Last week, Elon Musk's privately held SpaceX announced plans to send customers into space by early 2022 through a partnership with Space Adventures. The move brought comparisons to Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic (NYSE: SPCE) and its efforts to offer commercial flights starting this year. It may have also led investors to think there's now competition in space travel.
The easy comparison between the two seems to make them direct competitors, but that's not really the case. SpaceX is currently looking to use its rockets for space tourism, circling the planet a few times as much as 250 miles above the Earth's surface before landing. Virgin Galactic is much more focused on point-to-point travel, and ultimately that may be the more valuable commercial business long-term.
VSS Unity arrives at Spaceport America in New Mexico. Image source: Virgin Galactic.
Source Fool.com
