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The SpaceLiner is a hypersonic suborbital spaceplane concept initiated by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in 2005 and supported by the EU under the European Space Agency's (ESA) FAST 20XX program since December 2009.
The SpaceLiner is designed to be a reusable vehicle consisting of two stages: the booster and the space-plane itself. Both stages are propelled by LOx/LH2 rocket engines. The SpaceLiner lift-off is vertical (much like the Space Shuttle), powered by the combined thrust of the booster and the space-plane rocket engines. After the booster separation and engine cut-off, the space-plane behaves like a glider, skipping along the high layers of the atmosphere and ostensibly allowing for ultra-fast point-to-point travel. The SpaceLiner is designed to transport 50 passengers from Australia to Europe in 90 minutes or 100 passengers from Europe to California in 60 minutes.
