Virgin Galactic and Virgin Oceanic founder Sir Richard Branson's plans to explore space and the depths of the ocean have been put on hold indefinitely.

The announcement follows the fatal crash of Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo during a test flight over the Mojave Desert in California a few months ago. The postponement hit Virgin Oceanic particularly hard.

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Virgin Oceanic's goal is to transport marine tourists to the deep ocean in an 18-foot deep sea submarine that will "fly" among the deepest ocean floors. It first announced its ambitious marine tourism project in 2011.

The submarine was scheduled to dive each of the five deepest points on Earth's oceans for a period of two years. Branson also planned to pilot one of these dives at the Puerto Rico trench in the Atlantic Ocean.

Virgin Oceanic's DeepFlight Challenger submarine is designed to travel similar to a dolphin or manta ray. The deep sea craft, however, failed numerous stress tests and made people wary about the success of a voyage to the Mariana Trench and the four other deep sea locations.

DeepFlight, Virgin Oceanic's submarine manufacturer, didn't anticipate taking marine tourists into dangerous trench dives, however. They pulled out from the project when Virgin announced its plans to charge marine tourists US$500,000 per seat during deep sea voyages. 

Virgin Oceanic's website has been offline for months now and there are no new announcements about its plans. A spokesperson confirmed the project has been put on hold as the company seeks other technologies after DeepFlight withdrew.

Last August, Branson said starting new ventures can be challenging. Virgin Oceanic will give priority to cutting costs and improving safety. Branson also said the company is still passionate about exploring the ocean.

Film director James Cameron, however, beat Branson with his DeepSea Challenger submarine in 2012 that reached the bottom of the Mariana Trench some 5.1 miles below the surface. Branson was also planning to reach the ocean's deepest point.

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