Virgin Galactic, established by Sir Richard Branson in 2004, is a commercial space tourism company in Mojave, CA, operating from New Mexico, that aims to democratize access to space, enabling the general public to experience space travel. The flagship vehicle, 'VSS Unity,' is a suborbital spaceplane designed to carry passengers on short journeys to the edge of space, offering views of Earth before a runway landing. Spaceflight reservations are priced at USD $450,000 for a 90-minute journey.

On October 31, 2014, the experimental spaceflight VSS Enterprise suffered an in-flight breakup during a test flight and crashed in the Mojave Desert. The incident resulted in the death of Co-pilot Michael Alsbury and serious injuries to pilot Peter Siebold.

After a series of successful test flights, VSS Unity completed its inaugural fully crewed flight on July 11, 2021. The flight included Richard Branson and three other mission specialists, demonstrating the feasibility…