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US regulator grounds Virgin Galactic space planes as it investigates July flight


Still Waters

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Virgin Galactic space planes, which the British billionaire Richard Branson used to launch his journey into space in July, have been temporarily grounded by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) while it conducts an investigation into an issue that occurred during the 11 July flight.

“Virgin Galactic may not return the SpaceShipTwo vehicle to flight until the FAA approves the final mishap investigation report or determines the issues related to the mishap do not affect public safety,” the FAA said in a statement to the Guardian on Thursday.

The announcement came shortly after an investigation was initiated into the 11 July incident with Branson’s flight on his own spaceship, which “deviated from its air traffic control clearance” as it was landing back on American soil, according to the FAA.

The Guardian has contacted the Virgin Galactic for comment on this update.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/sep/02/richard-branson-virgin-galactic-faa-investigation

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10 minutes ago, Still Waters said:

Virgin Galactic space planes, which the British billionaire Richard Branson used to launch his journey into space in July, have been temporarily grounded by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) while it conducts an investigation into an issue that occurred during the 11 July flight.

“Virgin Galactic may not return the SpaceShipTwo vehicle to flight until the FAA approves the final mishap investigation report or determines the issues related to the mishap do not affect public safety,” the FAA said in a statement to the Guardian on Thursday.

The announcement came shortly after an investigation was initiated into the 11 July incident with Branson’s flight on his own spaceship, which “deviated from its air traffic control clearance” as it was landing back on American soil, according to the FAA.

The Guardian has contacted the Virgin Galactic for comment on this update.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/sep/02/richard-branson-virgin-galactic-faa-investigation

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Must have been a pretty big deviation I guess?  

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17 hours ago, OverSword said:

Must have been a pretty big deviation I guess?  

Not particularly, any deviation from the flight plan is considered a safety risk. SpaceX Starship test flights were temporarily grounded a few months back for a similar reason. 

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  • 4 weeks later...

Latest:

Virgin Galactic says FAA has cleared it for further flights

Virgin Galactic said Wednesday that the Federal Aviation Administration has cleared it to resume launches after an investigation into why its spaceship veered off course while descending during a July flight with founder Richard Branson aboard.

The company said it was advised by the FAA that corrective actions proposed by Virgin Galactic have been accepted.

A larger area will be designated as protected airspace to ensure there is room for "a variety of possible flight trajectories during spaceflight missions," a company statement said.

Virgin Galactic said it will incorporate additional steps in its flight procedures to ensure real-time mission notifications to FAA air traffic control.

https://phys.org/news/2021-09-virgin-galactic-faa-flights.html

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