Space Tourists: Ashton Kutcher Is 500th Virgin Galactic Customer

Hollywood actor Ashton Kutcher will join the long-list of celebrity space tourists paying to climb aboard Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic spaceline. The British billionaire announced Ashton as his 500th customer on Monday (March 19, 2012), saying he gave the actor a call to congratulate him, reports the Press Association.

Branson, who ultimately wants to make space travel safe and affordable, said, "He (Kutcher) is as thrilled as we are at the prospect of being among the first to cross the final frontier (and back!) with us and to experience the magic of space for himself". The Two and a Half Men star is among dozens of Hollywood names who have made the initial deposits to become the first to fly into space with Virgin. The ticket price for the initial trip is $200,000 and Virgin Galactic is in the final stages of its test flight operations. The company plans to begin running flights commercially next year.

Other notable passengers to have also submitted their deposits reportedly include Tom Hanks, Katy Perry, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Virgin Galactic's planned trajectory will overlap the Earth's atmosphere at 70,000 feet, officially making it a sub-orbital journey with a short period of weightlessness.