Virgin Galactic (SPCE) founder Richard Branson is reportedly trying to one-up rival Jeff Bezos as the two billionaires jockey to reach space first. SPCE stock rose.
XAmazon (AMZN) founder Bezos announced on Instagram Monday that he, his brother and an auction winner will be on the first crewed flight of Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket on July 20.
Branson tweeted his congratulations to Bezos and Blue Origin, adding a cryptic note to "watch this space ..."
Now, Virgin Galactic is pushing for a second rocket-powered test flight of its SpaceShipTwo for the July 4 weekend, this time with Branson aboard, an anonymous source told the blog Parabolicarc.com. But that is contingent on approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.
That would mark an acceleration of plans. On May 22, Virgin Galactic first launched SpaceShipTwo with two pilots and NASA research payloads. The company previously said the second test flight would include two pilots with a full cabin. Then Branson would be aboard a third flight.
"We are in the process of analyzing the data from our successful May 22nd flight," Virgin Galactic said in a statement. "As previously announced, we expect to complete the final test flights this summer through to early fall. At this time, we have not determined the date of our next flight."
IBD Live: A New Tool For Daily Stock Market Analysis
SPCE Stock Up Amid Space Race
Virgin Galactic shares jumped 8% to close at 37.49 on the stock market today. SPCE stock has received short interest in recent weeks and was among short squeezed stocks earlier this year.
Boeing (BA), whose venture capital arm HorizonX has a $20 million minority stake in Virgin Galactic, ended flat.
But industry watchers think that Bezos is the likely winner of the billionaire space race.
"It's extremely unlikely Virgin Galactic will be ready to fly Richard Branson within the next couple of months," Laura Forczyk, the founder of space consulting firm Astralytical, told IBD Tuesday. "They are working toward that reality but their vehicles have experienced difficulties in the past. They will be more concerned about safety than being the first."
But even if Branson isn't the first in space, Bezos' commitment to the first flight is a signal to all wannabe astronauts that space tourism is relatively safe.
Follow Gillian Rich on Twitter for space news and more.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:
Is SPCE Stock A Buy After Virgin Galactic Gets Research Flight Contract?
You Can't Buy SpaceX Yet But These Space Stocks Are Up For Grabs
