Virgin Galactic is aiming to transport passengers from Los Angeles to Tokyo in only one hour using its SpaceShipTwo space plane that takes tourists into space.

SpaceShipTwo brings tourists into space via a mother plane. When the mother plane reaches the correct height, it disengages and drops SpaceShipTwo. The space plane then ignites its rocket engines to zoom away into space at furious speed.

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George Whitesides, CEO of Virgin Galactic, said apart from LA to Tokyo, this process can transport people from the United Kingdom to Australia in two hours and the West Coast to Japan in only one.

For reference, a passenger aircraft flight from the UK to Australia takes some 21 hours. Virgin Galactic does offer a staggering improvement in travel time.

Whitesides continues pushing the boundaries of travel, saying in the future, they could be using liquid oxygen or liquid hydrogen to cross the Pacific in an hour.

"We don't have to accept the status quo," he said.

While there are still several complications, the European Space Agency is currently researching the method.

ESA has a genuine interest in the idea, saying the launch sequence of Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo is the most promising they have seen yet.

While it is an interesting idea, there is still the problem of price.

Tourists that get to ride on SpaceShipTwo pay as much as US $250,000 for a quick ride into orbit.

Will they be willing to make the same sacrifice to save 20 hours from the UK to Australia?

TagsVirgin Galactic, SpaceShipTwo, George Whitesides