[Image: Dawn Aerospace / Facebook]
You don’t have to be a billionaire or marry one to go to space anymore.
Space flight, or at least close to it, is now within the reach of the average Joe on the street, if that Joe has about $30 million to spare on one of Dawn Aerospace’s sleek new space planes.
The Dutch-New Zealand company just started taking orders for its Aurora space plane, as part of a plan to change how the entire aerospace industry works.
Dawn Aerospace’s new business model mirrors that of commercial airlines, where the Aurora spaceplane can be purchased by anyone for a wide range of missions or services. But unlike the traditional approach, where manufacturers keep ownership and control of their spacecraft, Aurora is not exclusive to Dawn Aerospace.
✈️ Today, Dawn Aerospace opens production orders for Aurora — the first-ever spaceplane available for purchase.
Read full press release here: https://t.co/5fRwNEE7u8#spaceplane #productrelease
— Dawn Aerospace (@DawnAerospace) May 22, 2025
The company claims this is the first time a space-capable vehicle has been made available for direct sale to customers.
“For the first time, customers have the opportunity to own an aircraft capable of reaching the edge of space,” Stefan Powell, CEO of Dawn Aerospace, said in a statement.
“It’s been over a century since commercial airlines began—now it’s time to launch the first spaceline.”
“Aurora is a game-changing platform for governments, spaceports, and new spaceplane operators to access extreme altitudes and deliver vital services and programs.”
The Aurora is designed to fly to the edge of space (the Kármán line) at an altitude of 328,000 feet, or 99.79 kilometres. The suborbital space plane, which can take off and land like a regular fixed-wing aircraft, has a top speed of Mach 3.5, a maximum payload capacity of 22 pounds, and a range of 80 miles.
It offers a turnaround time of only four hours between flights, suggesting that it may eventually be able to head to space multiple times per day. It will also provide flyers up to three minutes of weightlessness.
The Aurora has just completed its 57th test flight in November, reaching supersonic speeds (Mach 1.12) and climbing to 82,500 feet to cement a new world record for the fastest climb from runway to above 65,600 feet – previously held by the modified F-15 Streak Eagle.
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The first deliveries are expected to take place in 2027, so look out for plenty more influencers claiming ‘astronaut’ status in the latter part of the 2020s.
[Source: RobbReport]
