Ask an Explainer

Unfortunately, they can't. Planes need lift to fly; but to produce lift, you need air. Since there is no air in space, airplanes cannot fly in space.

Rockets are disgned to fly without needing lift: they rely etirely on thrust. While some engines need oxygen to work, it's easy to pack the oxygen along, in the form of a liquid or solid oxydizer. This way they can fly in space, even if there is no air.