BEIJING - Chinese start-up Deep Blue Aerospace said on Oct 23 it will sell its first two tickets for seats on a rocket that will take passengers to space in 2027, charging 1.5 million yuan (S$278,000) for the experience.

       Deep Blue Aerospace will put the tickets up for sale at 6pm on Oct 24 and plans to make more available in November. Passengers will be taken on a suborbital flight, meaning the rocket will reach outer space but not enter orbit.

       The commercial passenger flight industry is in its nascent stages, with US companies such as Blue Origin and SpaceX taking an early lead.

       Deep Blue Aerospace said reusable rockets are crucial to reducing high launch costs that prohibit large-scale commercialisation of space tourism. It said it plans to recover a carrier rocket from orbit in the first quarter of 2025.

       Other Chinese companies have announced plans to enter the space tourism sector. In May, state-backed CAS Space said it would launch space tourism flights by 2028. REUTERS