News > Virgin Galactic completes first spaceflight in over two years, in a step toward finishing development

Virgin Galactic completes first spaceflight in over two years, in a step toward finishing development

Virgin Galactic took a step closer to completing the development of its space tourism system on Saturday, successfully flying its first spaceflight in more than two years.

The company’s spacecraft, named VSS Unity, was carried up to an altitude of about 44,000 feet by a carrier aircraft called VMS Eve. The aircraft then released the spacecraft, which fired its rocket engine and accelerated to more than three times the speed of sound.