Virgin Galactic’s first next-generation Delta-class spaceship, Apeiron, has left its Arizona factory and arrived at Spaceport America in New Mexico for final testing and flight preparation.
Ferry Flight from Arizona to New Mexico
On 28 October 2026 the ship was revealed in its finished livery at the Mesa facility, then flew captive-carry beneath the twin-fuselage mothership Eve from Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport to Spaceport America. Departure: 10:29 a.m. MST. Landing: 12:59 p.m. MDT.
The Name: Ancient Greek for “the Boundless”
Apeiron (ἄπειρον) is the ancient Greek concept of the boundless, used by pre-Socratic philosophers such as Anaximander. The name was chosen by public vote, with thousands of responses from 83 countries.
Virgin Galactic CEO Michael Colglazier said: “This morning we gave Apeiron a name. This afternoon, Apeiron came home.”
Next Steps: Testing and Commercial Flights
At Spaceport America the team will complete avionics software integration and validation before flight testing. Commercial passenger flights are now targeted for early Q2 2027. The second spaceship is expected to enter service in late Q2 / early Q3 2027.
Each Delta-class vehicle is designed to fly twice a week with a lifetime of more than 500 missions. A second ship is already in assembly at the Mesa factory.
