In 2024, Virgin Galactic And Its VSS Unity Space Plane Will Be Grounded

Virgin Galactic and its current suborbital vehicle, VSS Unity, will now get a bit of a break, staying out of the skies until January 2024.

In 2024, Virgin Galactic And Its VSS Unity Space Plane Will Be Grounded (PHOTO: SPACE)

Virgin Galactic To Ground Its VSS Unity Space Plane In 2024

The pioneering space tourism company Virgin Galactic has announced that the company plans to reduce the frequency of its current suborbital vehicle flights and cease them entirely by mid-2024.

The Indian Today news reported that the Virgin Galactic company’s decision shifted its focus towards the development of its next-generation vehicles, known as the Delta-class, SpaceNews reported.

Furthermore, Unity will now get a bit of a break, staying out of the skies until January 2024, Virgin Galactic representatives have said. The spacecraft will then create an even bigger transition, flying just once or twice more before being grounded in mid-2024.

This modification was mentioned during a November 8 earnings call, where it was revealed that the VSS Unity, Virgin Galactic’s current suborbital vehicle, would transition to a quarterly flight schedule starting with its next mission, Galactic 06, in January 2024.

This will be followed by Galactic 07 in the second quarter of the exact year. A possible third mission, Galactic 08, is being considered for mid-2024, but the final decision has not been made yet.

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Virgin Galactic Will Also Layoff Staff

On November 7, Virgin Galactic also stated that they would be laying off staff and reducing other expenses to concentrate resources on this new class of vehicles, which Colglazier described as key to the company’s future.

As part of these changes, the company will be cutting 185 jobs, approximately 18% of its current workforce.

In a significant strategic transition, Virgin Galactic plans to shift resources from the Unity flights to expedite the development of the Delta-class vehicles. Colglazier explained, “The big move we’re making here is diverting the resources that have been placed into the Unity flights and redirecting them over to get the Delta ships done with the cash we have on hand.”

This move marks a new chapter in Virgin Galactic’s journey, as it seeks to revolutionize space tourism with its next-generation Delta-class vehicles.