Spaceflight Insider

News Archive / Tagged: The Spaceship Company

  • Gallery: Thursday’s rocket-powered flight sees VSS Unity break Mach 2

    Jason RhianJuly 27th, 2018

    MOJAVE, Calif. -- In a span of less than four months, Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity has carried out three "rocket-powered" supersonic flights. The most recent test took place on Thursday, July 26, 2018. 

  • Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity makes second powered flight

    Joe LatrellMay 29th, 2018

    Within less than two months, The SpaceShip Company has conducted a second test flight of the VSS Unity. This signals an increase in testing as the NewSpace company prepares for its first commercial flights.

  • Our SpaceFlight Heritage: SpaceShipOne, Government Zero – 13 years later

    Jason RhianJune 21st, 2017

    It was a heady time for the emerging NewSpace movement, Scaled Composites had sent Mike Melvill in SpaceShipOne on flight 15P up 62 miles into space. This set the stage for them to win the Ansari X-PRIZE and from there send the first tourists on suborbital hops. Or, so they hoped. Thirteen years later, the follow-on vehicle, SpaceShipTwo, has yet to send a single tourist to sub-orbit.

  • Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo successfully completes first glide flight

    Curt GodwinDecember 4th, 2016

    Fresh off the completion of its successful captive carry flight just a few days prior, Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo (SS2), christened VSS Unity, took the next step in its flight certification regime by completing its first solo glide flight on Dec. 3, 2016.

  • Virgin Galactic conducts captive carry flight of SpaceShipTwo

    Jim SharkeyDecember 1st, 2016

    On Wednesday, Nov. 30, Virgin Galactic conducted the fourth test flight of its SpaceShipTwo rocket plane VSS Unity. The carrier aircraft, WhiteKnightTwo VMS Eve, took off with VSS Unity from the runway of Mojave Air and Spaceport at 2:07 p.m. PST (22:07 GMT).

  • Video: The first captive carry test of VSS Unity

    Derek RichardsonSeptember 23rd, 2016

    Virgin Galactic recently released a video discussing the path traveled in getting VSS Unity ready for flight testing. This video, titled "Elevating Unity – Episode 1: Captive Carry", showcases The Spaceship Company and Virgin Galactic preparing for and conducting the first captive carry test the vehicle.