Polaris Intelligence
Polaris
Intelligence
AboutNational IntelligenceOrganizationsProductsMissionsSpacecraftConstellationsForecastsLatest Information
Explore
© Polaris Intelligence 2026Admin

Virgin Orbit

US
commercialFounded 2017
Long Beach, California, United States
virginorbit.com
Admin Edit

All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.

The first flight of Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne on 2020-05-25 failed to reach orbit when a propellant line broke seconds after ignition of the rocket’s first stage engine.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative GeneralJul 22, 2020Virgin Orbit identifies cause of engine shutdown on first LauncherOne flight

Virgin Orbit holds a Venture Class Launch Services contract, originally awarded in 2015, for a launch of a group of cubesats that will be one of the first operational missions for LauncherOne.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative PlanJul 22, 2020Virgin Orbit identifies cause of engine shutdown on first LauncherOne flight

Virgin Galactic’s smallsat launch business was spun off into a separate company, Virgin Orbit.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitTechnical ProductJul 2, 2020NASA preparing second round of smallsat launch services program

Virgin Orbit’s first LauncherOne launch on 2020-05-25 failed to reach orbit and carried a demonstration payload only.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative GeneralJul 2, 2020Commercial launch industry off to slow start in 2020

Virgin Orbit, the U.K. Space Agency, and Spaceport Cornwall held an online suppliers conference on 2020-06-04 to provide an update about plans to operate from Cornwall Airport Newquay.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitOrg RelationshipJun 5, 2020Virgin Orbit moving ahead with U.K. launch plans

Enabling Virgin Orbit launches from Cornwall requires work on U.K. launch regulations that would allow horizontal launch systems.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative GeneralJun 5, 2020Virgin Orbit moving ahead with U.K. launch plans

Virgin Orbit set a price of about $12,000,000 per LauncherOne launch prior to entering service.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative FinancialMay 25, 2020Virgin Orbit first launch attempt fails

Virgin Orbit established a wholly owned U.S.-incorporated subsidiary, VOX Space, to work with national security customers.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitOrg RelationshipMay 25, 2020Virgin Orbit first launch attempt fails

Virgin Orbit’s Cosmic Girl, a modified Boeing 747, took off from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California at 2:56 p.m. Eastern on the day of the launch.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative GeneralMay 25, 2020Virgin Orbit first launch attempt fails

Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne failed to reach orbit in its first launch attempt on 2020-05-25.

Mentioned as: virgin orbitTechnical ProductMay 25, 2020Virgin Orbit first launch attempt fails

Virgin Galactic spun out the LauncherOne project into a separate company, Virgin Orbit, in March 2017 based in Long Beach, California.

Mentioned as: virgin orbitTechnical ProductMay 25, 2020Virgin Orbit first launch attempt fails

The coronavirus pandemic interrupted Virgin Orbit’s launch preparations and caused the company to change mission control layout and revise factory work procedures to operate in a COVID-19 environment.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitTechnical ProductMay 23, 2020Virgin Orbit sets expectations for first launch

Virgin Orbit tested a LauncherOne test article in a drop test in July 2019.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative GeneralMay 20, 2020Virgin Orbit ready for first orbital launch attempt

Launching from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam will allow Virgin Orbit to support launches to both equatorial and polar orbits.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitOrg RelationshipMay 20, 2020Virgin Orbit ready for first orbital launch attempt

Virgin Orbit will make the first flight of its LauncherOne air-launched vehicle as soon as 2020-05-24.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitOrg RelationshipMay 20, 2020Virgin Orbit ready for first orbital launch attempt

Virgin Orbit plans to perform its inaugural LauncherOne mission on 2020-05-24 with Cosmic Girl, the company’s modified Boeing 747, flying out of the Mojave Air and Space Port in California.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative GeneralMay 20, 2020Virgin Orbit ready for first orbital launch attempt

Virgin Orbit decided that launching LauncherOne from Guam could serve all orbital inclinations.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative GeneralMay 7, 2020VOX Space signs deal to fly LauncherOne from Andersen Air Force base in Guam

VOX Space, a subsidiary of Virgin Orbit, has Department of Defense contracts and is preparing to conduct its first orbital flight.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitOrg RelationshipApr 20, 2020Pentagon identifies small launch industry as one of the most impacted by pandemic

Virgin Orbit completed a captive carry test flight of its LauncherOne system on 2020-04-12.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitOrg RelationshipApr 12, 2020Virgin Orbit completes final major test before first LauncherOne flight

Virgin Orbit characterized the 2020-04-12 captive carry as a complete, end-to-end launch rehearsal of the aircraft and ground operations except for using liquid nitrogen instead of LauncherOne’s operational liquid oxygen propellant.

Mentioned as: Virgin OrbitNarrative GeneralApr 12, 2020Virgin Orbit completes final major test before first LauncherOne flight
Page28of35