Crew announces Virgin Galactic’s first commercial space flight

Virgin Galactic has revealed the crew members who will be aboard the upcoming “Galactic 01” mission on June 29, the company’s first fully commercial crewed space flight. announced on mondayColin Bennett, Virgin Galactic’s chief astronaut instructor, will be joined by Walter Viladei and Angelo Landolfi – two senior members of the Italian Air Force – and Pantaleone Carlucci, a pilot and technical engineer from Italy’s National Research Council.

If the mission is successful, Virgin Galactic could soon begin competing with rival companies offering commercial passenger flights into space spacex and Blue Origin, owned by Jeff Bezos.

team will operate many suborbital science experiments During the 90-minute flight, such as testing instruments for measuring cosmic radiation and studying various materials in microgravity conditions. The cabin of the SpaceShipTwo vehicle VSS Unity – Virgin Galactic’s rocket-powered spacecraft carrying passengers – will be converted into a suitable suborbital science laboratory for conducting experiments. Former US Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Michael Masucci will pilot VSS Unity, while veteran US military pilots Kelly Latimer and Jameel Janjua will fly VMS Eve, the mothership carrying Unity into space.

“Galactic 01 is our first commercial space flight and we are honored to have been chosen by the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council to support their first space research mission,” Virgin Galactic Chief Executive Michael Colglazier said in a statement. ” “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.”

Virgin Galactic first signed a contract with the Italian Air Force for this mission back in 2019The flight is estimated to take place between late 2020 and early 2021. It was delayed due to several factors such as supply chain issues and labor constraints. The US Federal Aviation Authority additionally halted all Virgin Galactic flights until the end of 2021 to complete an investigation into technical issues that arose during the Unity 22 mission carrying Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson.

A successful test flight conducted in May this year was Virgin Galactic’s first crewed mission in almost two years. There is expected to be a second commercial space flight called “Galactic 02”. early august (though no specific dates have been provided), which the company anticipates will be followed by monthly space flights.

However, recent space-based ventures haven’t fared well for Virgin – after Virgin Orbit, the company’s service for launching small commercial satellites split from Virgin Galactic in 2017 this year after it was unable to provide the extra protection Operations were suspended early in the year. Funding just two months after his failed mission in Cornwall, UK.