Virgin Galactic’s first next-generation suborbital spaceplane was moved from an assembly hangar to a testing hangar as it nears completion. Credit: Virgin Galactic
WASHINGTON — Virgin Galactic said May 14 it remains on track, technically and financially, to start commercial flights of its next-generation suborbital spaceplane before the end of the year.
In a first-quarter earnings call, company executives said work on its first SpaceShip vehicle is on schedule, with the completed airframe recently moving from its assembly hangar to a testing hangar at its production facility near Phoenix.
The vehicle will be completed and rolled out by the company’s next earnings call in August, after which it will be transported by Virgin’s Eve carrier aircraft to Spaceport America in New Mexico for flight tests.
“We remain on track to commence flight testing in Q3 and space flight in Q4,” Michael Colglazier, chief executive of Virgin Galactic, said on the call, reiterating a schedule the company provided in its previous earnings call March 30.
