Virgin Galactic space program stalling

rp041511a/ A1 / Albuquerque Journal/ Richard Pipes/ A view of the back of the Spaceport America Terminal hanger.
By Hannah Edensor


Four years on from its completion, and Virgin Galactic’s pristine runway has seen little use.

Stretching through one of New Mexico’s most remote areas of desert, the place where Virgin hopes to one day launch the world’s first commercial space-line isn’t running on all engines as originally planned.

According to CJ Online, Virgin Galactic had proclaimed 2015 the year for lift off, until the company’s rocket-powered spacecraft broke apart over California’s Mojave Desert during a test flight last year.

The accident that killed one pilot sparked speculation about the future of commercial space tourism, as well as Spaceport America, writes CJ Online, however Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides saying things are currently back on track.

“I really think we’re turning a corner,” Whitesides said. “We’ve gone through one of the toughest things a company can go through and we’re still standing, and now we’re really moving forward with pace.”

Virgin Galactic’s manufacturing crew is about two-thirds done with building a new spacecraft, according to CJ Online reports, and the team is gearing up for a test-flight program that will be one of the final hurdles before getting off the ground.

“Our company has spent a lot of time and money to get to the point where we can carry out successful commercial operations at Spaceport America. We’re still committed,” he said.

While hesitant about giving a final date to the company milestone, Whitesides is confident test flights will resume later this year, which is exactly what taxpayers want to hear, given they have already funnelled nearly a quarter of a billion dollars into the project.

But New Mexico has struggled to rebound from the recession, writes CJ Online, and Republican Governor Susana Martinez’s administration has said the Virgin Galactic investment has the chance to carve out a new frontier in space tourism.

Virgin Galactic continues to pay its lease, and more money will be filtered into the project from lease and user fees related to testing, which is scheduled to pick back up in spring, for a reusable rocket being developed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

Image source: abqjournal.com

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