Spirit of Mojave (2023 – onwards; with StratoLaunch)
Type
Boeing 747-41R 44/32/310[1][2][3]
Manufacturer
Boeing
Construction number
32745[2][3]
Manufactured
2001[1]
Registration
G-VWOW (2001 – 2015; with Virgin Atlantic)[1]
N744VG (2015 – onwards; with Virgin Galactic[4] and Virgin Orbit and Stratolaunch[5])
First flight
29 September 2001[2]
Owners and operators
Virgin Atlantic (2001 – 2015)
Virgin Galactic (2015 – 2017)
Virgin Orbit (2017 – 2023)
Stratolaunch (2023 – onwards)
In service
2001 – October 2015 (Virgin Atlantic)[6]
November 2015 – October 2017 (Virgin Galactic)[4]
October 2017 – May 2023 (Virgin Orbit)[5]
May 2023 - onwards (StratoLaunch)[5]
Status
Expected to be refit to launch Stratolaunch's Talon.
Aircraft carried
LauncherOne orbital rocket
Spirit of Mojave, previously Cosmic Girl is a Boeing 747-400 aircraft. A former passenger airliner operated by Virgin Atlantic, it was purchased by Virgin Galactic in 2015 to be used as the first stage launch platform (or mothership launch pad) for the air launch stage of the smallsat orbital launch vehicle, the LauncherOne. In 2017, the aircraft was transferred to the orbital launch subsidiary, Virgin Orbit, and its livery updated to Virgin Orbit. LauncherOne attempted its first launch on 25 May 2020; the launch was a failure. The first successful launch (second launch in total) took place on 17 January 2021.
Its parent, Virgin Orbit, declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy on April 4, 2023. It was subsequently sold at auction to Stratolaunch to complement their existing Roc launch platform for their Talon Hypersonic testbed vehicle.[7] It is renamed as "Spirit of Mojave".[citation needed]
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^ abcCite error: The named reference WALN-2017-10-10 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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^"Virgin Orbit To Close After Assets Divided Among Four Bankruptcy Bidders | Aviation Week Network". aviationweek.com. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
SpiritofMojave, previously Cosmic Girl is a Boeing 747-400 aircraft. A former passenger airliner operated by Virgin Atlantic, it was purchased by Virgin...
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closed course of 2,636 km at Oshkosh, Wisconsin circa July–August 1975 FAI class C1b distance over a closed course of 7,725.3 km at Mojave, California on...
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