No one should be surprised Virgin Orbit failed—it had a terrible business planThe business case simply did not close. by Eric Berger - May 24, 2023 4:46pm GMTIt's now official—the launch company Virgin Orbit is being sold for parts.[…] the problem was Virgin Orbit's management, including Chief Executive Officer Dan Hart and its founder, Sir Richard Branson. Due to their leadership, the company had a terrible, unsupportable business plan and compounded those issues by hiring an unsustainable workforce of 700 people.
Update: U.S. bankruptcy court has filed the orders approving Virgin Orbit's asset sales to Rocket Lab and Stratolaunch.
Virgin Orbit CEO Dan Hart, in a final post on the company's LinkedIn: "Thank you for the great honor of being a part of your team."
Virgin Orbit 98,073 followers1dAt Virgin Orbit:We pioneered a new method of space flight, flying liquid-fueled rockets to space from under the wing of a 747 aircraft.After 4 successful sequential commercial space flights, and the precise delivery of 33 satellites, we experienced an upper stage launch anomaly while attempting the first launch in history from Western Europe.We developed and operated a human-assisted launch system unlike any other, and most importantly, did it safely.Upon the onslaught of COVID in 2020, with our community at risk, we designed a ventilator and delivered 600 of them to Emergency Medical Services.All of this was taken on by a team of individuals who continually challenged the norm, and routinely pushed the edge of the envelope in the finest tradition of aerospace innovation.This is the legacy of Virgin Orbit.To all of those who participated, everyone who turned a wrench, flew a mission, ran a launch procedure, released a design, a plan, a contract, a proposal or business analysis, made a piece of art, or lead a team; to all those who supplied parts, material and services, and to all of our colleagues and customers worldwide, thank you for the great honor of being a part of your team.- Dan
So long and thanks for all the fish. Or in Dan's case in 2021 $670k bonus plus $1M worth of stock options not stock.
Jefferies, after a recent meeting with Rocket Lab $RKLB, says the company's $16 million purchase of Virgin Orbit assets in the bankruptcy auction is worth $100 million:- $80m of equipment- $20m of real estate
Right, Jefferies was passing along the info they got from meeting with Rocket Lab's CFO and IR
The end of a long career. #VirginOrbits #CosmicGirl has begun stripping of its livery before changing into #stratolaunch colors #avgeek 06-13-23
Firefly to buy remaining Virgin Orbit assets