The following is a list of Virgin Galactic launches since 2003.
Virgin Galactic launch The Virgin Galactic series of vehicles, starting with SpaceShipOne, are more comparable to the X-15 than orbiting spacecraft like the Space Shuttle. Accelerating a spacecraft to orbital speed requires more than 60 times as much energy as accelerating it to Mach 3. It would also require an elaborate heat shield to safely dissipate that energy during re-entry.
SpaceShipOne
Although not a Virgin Galactic launcher, SpaceShipOne was the direct predecessor of the Virgin Galactic vehicles, and served to demonstrate the feasibility of the concept. SpaceShipOne was an experimental air-launched rocket-powered aircraft with sub-orbital spaceflight capability at speeds of up to 3,000 ft/s (900 m/s), using a hybrid rocket motor. The design featured a unique "feathering" atmospheric reentry system where the rear half of the wing and the twin tail booms folds 70 degrees upward along a hinge running the length of the wing; this increases drag while retaining stability. SpaceShipOne completed the first crewed private spaceflight in 2004. That same year, it won the US$10 million Ansari X Prize and was immediately retired from active service. Its mother ship was named "White Knight". Both craft were developed and flown by Mojave Aerospace Ventures, which was a joint venture between Paul Allen and Scaled Composites, Burt Rutan's aviation company. Allen provided the funding of approximately US$25 million.
Rutan has indicated that ideas about the project began as early as 1994 and the full-time development cycle time to the 2004 accomplishments was about three years. The vehicle first achieved supersonic flight on December 17, 2003, which was also the one-hundredth anniversary of the Wright Brothers' historic first powered flight. SpaceShipOne's first official spaceflight, known as flight 15P, was piloted by Mike Melvill. A few days before that flight, the Mojave Air and Space Port was the first commercial spaceport licensed in the United States. A few hours after that flight, Melvill became the first licensed U.S. commercial astronaut. The overall project name was "Tier One" which has evolved into Tier 1b with a goal of taking a successor ship's first passengers into space.
SpaceShipOne's official model designation is Scaled Composites Model 316.
SpaceShipTwo The Scaled Composites Model 339 SpaceShipTwo (SS2) was an air-launched suborbital spaceplane type designed for space tourism. It was manufactured by The Spaceship Company, a California-based company owned by Virgin Galactic.
SpaceShipTwo was carried to its launch altitude by a White Knight Two aircraft, before being released to fly on into the upper atmosphere, powered by its rocket engine. It then glided back to Earth and performed a conventional runway landing. The spaceship was officially unveiled to the public on 7 December 2009 at the Mojave Air and Space Port in California. On 29 April 2013, after nearly three years of unpowered testing, the first one constructed successfully performed its first powered test flight.
Virgin Galactic planned to operate a fleet of five SpaceShipTwo spaceplanes in a private passenger-carrying service. Virgin Galactic took bookings for many years, with a suborbital flight ticket price rising quite heavily throughout the years.Fly With Us Virgin Galactic Retrieved 5 November 2015 The spaceplane was also used to carry scientific payloads for NASA and other organizations.
VSS Enterprise
VSS Enterprise (tail number: N339SS) was the first SpaceShipTwo (SS2) spaceplane, built by Scaled Composites for Virgin Galactic. As of 2004, it was planned to be the first of five commercial suborbital SS2 spacecraft planned by Virgin Galactic. It was also the first ship of the Scaled Composites Model 339 SpaceShipTwo class, based on upscaling the design of the record-breaking SpaceShipOne.
The VSS Enterprise'''s name was an acknowledgement of the USS Enterprise from the Star Trek television series. The spaceplane also shared its name with NASA's prototype Space Shuttle orbiter, as well as the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise. It was rolled out on 7 December 2009.
SpaceShipTwo made its first powered flight in April 2013. Richard Branson said it "couldn't have gone more smoothly".
On 31 October 2014, during a test flight, the first SpaceShipTwo VSS Enterprise broke up in flight and crashed in the Mojave desert. A preliminary investigation suggested that the craft's descent device deployed too early. One pilot, Michael Alsbury, was killed; the other was treated for a serious shoulder injury after parachuting from the stricken spacecraft.
VSS Unity
VSS Unity (Virgin Space Ship Unity, Registration: N202VG), previously referred to as VSS Voyager, was a SpaceShipTwo-class suborbital rocket-powered crewed spaceplane. It was the second SpaceShipTwo-spacecraft to be built and was used as part of the Virgin Galactic fleet.
VSS Unity was unveiled on 19 February 2016. The spacecraft completed ground-based system integration testing in September 2016, after which the vehicle flew its first test flight also in September 2016. Its first flight to space (above 50 miles altitude), VSS Unity VP03, took place on 13 December 2018. It flew its final test flight (that is, final flight with only Virgin Galactic personnel onboard), Unity 25, on 25 May 2023. It flew its first operational flight (that is, flight carrying passengers that were not Virgin Galactic employees), Galactic 01, on 29 June 2023. It flew its last flight, Galactic 07, on 8 June 2024, after which it was retired.
SpaceShipThree SpaceShip III (SS3, also with Roman numeral III; formerly SpaceShipThree) is an upcoming class of spaceplanes by Virgin Galactic to follow SpaceShipTwo. It was first teased on the Virgin Galactic Twitter account on 25 February 2021 announcing the rollout of the first SpaceShip III plane on 30 March 2021.
Launch Statistics Rocket
Outcome
Flight type
Flights
SpaceShipTwo
VSS Enterprise flights Sources:''SpaceShipTwo (SS2) History, skyrocket.de
Legend CodeDetailGFxxGlide FlightCCxxCaptive Carry FlightCFxxCold Flow FlightPFxxPowered FlightFxxFeathering deployed
Flights Flight designationDateDurationMaximum altitudeTop speedPilot / co-pilotNotes41 / GF0110 October 201013 min EAS 2 gSiebold / Alsbury44 / GF0228 October 201010 min, 51 sec EAS 3 gStucky / Alsbury45 / GF0317 November 201011 min, 39 sec EAS 3.5 gSiebold / Nichols47 / GF0413 January 201111 min, 34 sec EAS 3.8 gStucky / Nichols56 / GF0522 April 201114 min, 31 secSiebold / Shane57 / GF0627 April 201116 min, 7 secStucky / Alsbury58 / GF074 May 201111 min, 5 secSiebold / NicholsF0159 / GF0810 May 201113 min, 2 secStucky / Shane60 / GF0919 May 201111 min, 32 secSiebold / Binnie61 / GF1025 May 201110 min, 14 secAbove Stucky / BinnieF0262 / (CC12)9 June 2011Siebold / ShaneRelease failure during flight intended as GF1164 / GF1114 June 201113 min, 18 secSiebold / Shane65 / GF1215 June 201110 min, 32 secStucky / Nichols66 / GF1321 June 20118 min, 55 secSiebold / Nichols67 / GF1423 June 20117 min, 33 secStucky / Nichols68 / GF1527 June 20117 min, 39 secSiebold / Binnie73 / GF1629 September 20117 min, 15 secStucky / Nichols / PersallF0387 / GF1726 June 201211 min, 22 secSiebold / Alsbury88 / GF1829 June 201213 minStucky / Mackay90 / GF1918 July 201210 min, 39 secSiebold / Nichols91 / GF202 August 20128 minStucky / NicholsF0492 / GF217 August 20129 min, 52 secSiebold / ColmerF0593 / GF2211 August 20128 min, 2 secStucky / Binnie109 / GF2319 December 201213 min, 24 secStucky / Alsbury113 / GF243 April 20139 minStucky / NicholsF06114 / CF0112 April 201310 min, 48 secStucky / Alsbury115 / PF0129 April 201313 minMach 1.22Stucky / Alsbury130 / GF2525 July 201311 min, 52 secStucky / Mackay131 / GF268 August 201310 minStucky / MackayF07132 / PF025 September 201314 minMach 1.43Stucky / NicholsF08141 / GF2711 December 2013.11 minStucky / Masucci147 / PF0310 January 201412 min, 43 secMach 1.4Mackay / StuckyF09149 / GF2817 January 201414 min, 12 secSiebold / Sturckow156 / GF2929 July 201412 minMasucci / Siebold164 / CF0228 August 201413 minSiebold / Alsbury170 / GF307 October 201410 min, 30 secSiebold / SturckowF10?? / PF0431 October 20140 min, 13 secroughly ? (at least Mach 0.92)Siebold / AlsburyUnintended feathering destroys vehicle in-flight
VSS Unity flights
Legend CodeDetailGFxxGlide FlightCCxxCaptive Carry FlightCFxxCold Flow FlightPFxxPowered FlightFxxFeathering deployed
Flights Flight designationDateDurationMaximum altitudeTop speedPilot / co-pilot / passengers Notes01 / CC018 September 201615.2 km (50,000 ft)Stucky / Mackay02 / CC021 November 2016Strong winds, no release during flight intended as GF0103 / CC033 November 2016Strong winds, no release during second attempt at GF0104 / CC0430 November 2016Test of minor modifications05 / GF013 December 201610 minutes16.8 km (55,000 ft)Mach 0.6Stucky / MackayFirst Glide Flight06 / GF0222 December 2016Stucky / Mackay07 / GF0324 February 2017Sturckow / Mackay3rd Glide Flight08 / GF041 May 2017Stucky / MasucciF0109 / CF011 June 2017Mackay / Sturckow10 / GF064 August 2017Mackay / SturckowFirst flight with major propulsion components aboard.11 / GF0711 January 2018Mach 0.9Stucky / Masucci12 / PF015 April 201825.7 km (84,300 ft)Mach 1.87Stucky / MackayF0213 / PF0229 May 201834.9 km (114,501 ft)Mach 1.9Mackay / StuckyTest of changed center of gravity as passenger seats carried for first time. F0314 / PF0326 July 201852.1 km (170,800 ft)Mach 2.47Mackay / MasucciReached Mesosphere for first time.15 / VP-0313 December 201882.7 km (271,330 ft)Mach 2.9Stucky / SturckowReached outer space for first time according to the US definition of the space border.16 / VF-0122 February 201989.9 km (295,007 ft)Mach 3.04 Mackay / Masucci / MosesCarried third crew member (1 in the passenger cabin) for the first time 17 / GF081 May 202015.24 km (50,000 ft)Mach 0.7 Mackay / Sturckow First flight from New Mexico 18 / GF0925 June 202015.54 km (51,000 ft)Mach 0.85 Stucky / Masucci 1912 December 2020Mackay / SturckowFirst attempted crewed spaceflight from New Mexico, aborted due to computer malfunction, engine ignited and automatically turned off.21 / VF-0322 May 202189.23 km (55.45 mi)Mackay / SturckowFirst crewed spaceflight (above 50 miles) from New Mexico2211 July 202186.1 km (53.5 mi)Mackay / Masucci / Sirisha Bandla, Colin Bennett, Beth Moses, Richard Branson First fully crewed flight included Richard Branson.24 / GF1026 April 20239 minutes13.5 km (47,000 ft)Sturckow / Pecile2525 May 202314 minutes87.2 km (54.2 mi)Mach 2.94Masucci / Sturckow / Moses / Mays / Gilbert / HuieGalactic 0129 June 202313:50 minutes85.1 km (52.9 mi)Mach 2.88Masucci / Pecile / Villadei / Carlucci / Pandolfi / BennettFirst VSS Unity commercial service flight, carrying members of the Italian Air Force.Galactic 0210 August 202315:38 minutes88.5 km (55.0 mi)Mach 3.00Sturckow / Latimer / Moses / Goodwin / Schahaff / MayersFirst VSS Unity flight carrying a private astronaut.Galactic 038 September 202312:37 minutes88.6 km (55.1 mi)Mach 2.95Masucci / Pecile / Moses / Baxter / Reynard / NashGalactic 046 October 202314:23 minutes87.4 km (54.3 mi)Mach 2.95Latimer / Sturckow / Moses / Rosano / Beattie / SalimGalactic 052 November 202314:20 minutes87.2 km (54.2 mi)Mach 2.96Masucci / Latimer / Bennett / Stern / Gerardi / MaisonrougeGalactic 0626 January 202488.8 km (55.2 mi)Mach 2.98Sturckow / Pecile / Borozdina / Vaughn / Haider / KornswietGalactic 078 June 202487.5 km (54.4 mi)Mach 2.96Pecile / Janjua / Atasever/ Manenti /Pergament / SadhwaniFinal powered flight 33 / GF1127 May 2026 Masucci / Alix Return to flight, training glide flight 34 / GF1216 September 2026Sturckow / EdgellTraining glide flight
Notes
References