The interior of a Virgin Galactic space vehicle.
-
Virgin Galactic / Cover Images / SIP
Virgin Galactic announced on Wednesday that it is planning the first space flight test of its SpaceShipTwo spacecraft by “the end of autumn”.
The machine which will take off from its base located in New Mexico, will carry two pilots on board, reports
Numerama
.
The ultimate goal is to organize tourist flights in space.
In a statement, the company assures that it remains "focused on safety", its "priority".
Virgin Galactic explains that its pilots, infrastructure, vehicles and teams are currently subject to very strict tests.
Another flight test should be organized later.
The company hopes to be able to make its first inaugural commercial flight in early 2021.
Thread: we are preparing for the first spaceflight from our new operational base at Spaceport America, NM.
This flight will be crewed by two test pilots and carry several research payloads to space in the cabin.
https://t.co/RrbiTj73gD pic.twitter.com/koqFlu1cv1
- Virgin Galactic (@virgingalactic) October 14, 2020
Pilots trained and trained intensively
The test mission will involve the VSS Unity model of the Virgin Galactic ship.
During the test, the date of which has not been specified, the cabin of the aircraft will also house equipment on board as part of three scientific experiments carried out jointly with NASA.
Before take off, a dress rehearsal of the fuel loading process will be organized, as the operation will take place at a new site.
For their part, the pilots have already undergone intensive preparation in the form of various training and training modules.
Most of these modules were organized using the Virgin Galactic simulator.
The mother ship VMS Eve, used for the launch of certain machines, was also used for pilot exercises.
World
Virgin Galactic wants to build a supersonic aircraft
High-Tech
Space tourism: Virgin Galactic's ship will have cameras to take selfies with Earth
Rocket
Space conquest
Science
United States
Flight
Space
Tourism