Family-level launch record combining canonical variants, historical missions, public cadence forecasts, and available payload performance specs.
Historical missions are grouped by actual launch year. Forecast cadence uses family-level launch-rate rows.
| Year | Historical missions | Forecast launches |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 1 | 0 |
| 2021 | 2 | 0 |
| 2022 | 2 | 0 |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 |
Payload capacity by variant and target orbit when structured capacity rows are available.
| Variant | Orbit | Capacity | Altitude | Inclination | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No performance specsNo structured payload capacity rows are linked to this vehicle family. | |||||
Latest launched missions using variants in this family.
| Mission | Variant | Launch |
|---|---|---|
| Launch 2023-F01 | LauncherOne | Jan 9, 2023 |
| STP-S28A | LauncherOne | Jul 2, 2022 |
| STP-27VPB | LauncherOne | Jan 13, 2022 |
| STP-27VPA |
Canonical variants rolled up into this launch vehicle family.
| Variant | Stages | Missions | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
LauncherOne | Not stated | 6 | Retired |
LauncherOne |
| Jun 30, 2021 |
| Elana XX | LauncherOne | Jan 17, 2021 |
| Launch 2020-F04 | LauncherOne | May 25, 2020 |
Upcoming mission rows with announced launch timing.
| Mission | Variant | Announced |
|---|---|---|
No forecasted missionsNo upcoming announced mission rows are linked to this vehicle family. | ||
Virgin Orbit acquired a Boeing 747 from Virgin Atlantic in 2015 to serve as LauncherOne’s air-launch platform.
Virgin Orbit’s most recent LauncherOne mission on 2023-01-09 failed due to a fuel filter that came loose in the rocket’s upper stage, leading to a premature engine shutdown.
Virgin Orbit paused operations and furloughed most of its staff on 2023-03-15 while attempting to raise additional capital to return LauncherOne to flight.
Virgin Orbit brought some employees back on 2023-03-22 to continue preparations for a next LauncherOne mission while pursuing a reported $200,000,000 investment from Matthew Brown Companies.
Virgin Orbit experienced a LauncherOne mission failure from the United Kingdom on 2023-01-09, that prevented the vehicle from reaching orbit.
The 2023-01-09 LauncherOne failure has been linked to a filter in a fuel line in the rocket’s upper stage that dislodged and led to a malfunction of the stage’s engine.
In January 2022, NearSpace Launch launched the Globalstar Experiment and Risk Reduction Satellite on a Virgin Galactic LauncherOne.
Virgin Orbit provided additional details on the likely cause of the LauncherOne failure that occurred on 2023-01-09.
Four satellites built by SatRev have been delivered to Low Earth Orbit by Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne system on the Tubular Bells and Above the Clouds missions.
Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne is an air-launched rocket that deploys from a modified Boeing 747 carrier aircraft at high altitude.
LauncherOne completed four successful missions prior to a launch from the United Kingdom on 2023-01-09 that failed to reach orbit.
Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne rocket on the Start Me Up mission from Spaceport Cornwall in England failed to reach orbit on 2023-01-09.
The investigation of the 2023-01-09 LauncherOne failure is being overseen jointly by the U.K.’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.
Four satellites built by SatRev have been delivered to low Earth orbit by Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne on the Tubular Bells and Above the Clouds missions.
The 2023-01-09 LauncherOne failure was caused by an anomaly on the rocket’s upper stage that led to a premature shutdown and prevented the vehicle from reaching orbit.
The U.K. Air Accidents Investigation Branch and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration are jointly overseeing the investigation into the 2023-01-09 LauncherOne failure.
Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne mission on 2023-01-09, its first launch from the United Kingdom, failed to reach orbit.
Virgin Orbit designs and manufactures its LauncherOne rockets in Long Beach, California and air-launches them from the wing of its converted Boeing 747-400 named Cosmic Girl.
LauncherOne’s return-to-flight will take place from Mojave Air and Space Port in California, which hosted all five previous LauncherOne missions before the Spaceport Cornwall launch.
Virgin Orbit’s first LauncherOne mission from the United Kingdom failed to reach orbit on 2023-01-09 due to an anomaly that caused a premature shutdown of the rocket’s upper stage.