Virgin GalacticRichard Branson's Virgin Galactic is aiming to launch its first-ever commercial spaceflight service on Thursday, the company has announced. "Virgin Galactic's research missions will usher in a new era of repeatable and reliable access to space for government and research institutions for years to come," said Virgin Galactic CEO Michael Colglazier in a statement. Virgin Galactic's suborbital spaceflight system consists of two elements: a carrier plane known as VMS Eve and a six-passenger, two-pilot SpaceShipTwo space plane called VSS Unity. Late last month, Virgin Galactic had successfully completed its final test flight to suborbital space -- the company's first flight in nearly two years. The last Virgin Galactic spaceflight took place in July 2021 and had Virgin CEO Richard Branson, along with three other employees, on board.

Source: dna June 29, 2023 21:21 UTC