Boeing invests $20m in Virgin Galactic's space program

Boeing agreed to invest $20m for a minority stake in Virgin Galactic, a startup that is preparing to fly its customers into space next year. The relationship is designed as a collaboration aimed at shaping the future of human space travel, the companies said in a statement Tuesday. Virgin Galactic also is setting longer-term sights on shuttling airline travelers around the world at high speeds - a mode of transport that will take years to achieve. The deal positions the companies to explore the marketplace for airline travel at hypersonic speeds above the Earth's atmosphere, trimming trips across the globe to two hours or less. Elon Musk's Space Exploration Technologies Corp. also has announced plans for such flights in the future. Boeing's investment is "a catalyst for broader collaboration and deeper collaboration," said Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides. The future of high-speed airline travel is "a big chess board" with numerous engineering, technological and financial issues to resolve, he said in an interview. "We can really start to dig into some of these questions that need to be put in place." Boeing will make the investment through its HorizonX Ventures arm to join the space startup founded by UK billionaire Richard Branson. Boeing next year is set to fly its first commercial space customers - astronauts - to the International Space Station as part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's commercial crew program.<br/>