Elon Musk on Mars flights: ‘Good chance’ first passengers will die

Billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk says his company SpaceX is close to sending passengers on test flights to Mars, but with a catch: the trip will likely be deadly.

Musk told attendees of the South by Southwest tech and pop culture festival that SpaceX is aiming to launch an interplanetary shuttle to Mars by the first half of 2019. The Tesla founder said the trips would be “up and down flights” using reusable rockets, with flights likely costing less than $6 million. However, he warned that flights to Mars would not simply be a luxury excursion for the rich and famous.