Bransons

Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. sent paying customers to the edge of space for the first time, a milestone for the Richard Branson-founded company almost two decades in the making.The VSS Unity craft reached space at about 9:30 a.m. local time in New Mexico, Virgin Galactic revealed in a livestream of the event on its website Thursday. That was about an hour after the flight took off, carrying six people on board, including researchers from the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council of Italy. The commercial…

Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit Holdings filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Tuesday after the satellite launch company failed to secure the long-term funding needed to help it recover from a January rocket failure.The Long Beach, Calif.-based company lodged the filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware seeking a sale of its assets after announcing the layoff of roughly 85 per cent of its 750 employees last week."We believe that the Chapter 11 process represents the best path forward to identify and…

Virgin Investments Limited pumped $55 million into Virgin Orbit across three cash injections since November 2022, according to an SEC filing in February.Image: Virgin OrbitHouston, Virgin Orbit has a problem. The satellite launch company from British entrepreneur Richard Branson has announced that it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware.Astronomers Could Soon Get Warnings When SpaceX Satellites Threaten Their ViewVirgin Orbit announced the news in a press release this morning, and the company intends to use the…

British billionaire Richard Branson’s rocket company Virgin Orbit Holdings filed for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. on Tuesday ahead of an effort to sell the company. The California-based company said in a statement early Tuesday that it filed for Chapter 11 protection for the parent organization and several subsidiaries in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. It will continue operating under Chapter 11, though the announcement comes after the company said in a regulatory filing on Thursday that it would lay…

Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit Holdings Inc. has filed for bankruptcy after the satellite-launch venture said it wasn’t able to secure sufficient funding to continue in what has become a hypercompetitive market. The company on Tuesday said it was working to sell itself. Just three months ago, it was poised to make history by delivering the first satellites into orbit from the billionaire’s home country of the U.K.—before the high-profile launch ended in the destruction of its satellite…

Virgin Orbit crew poses at the opening bell ceremony as a 70 foot model rocket with satellites is placed in front of the NASDAQ in Times Square of New York City, United States on January 7, 2022.Tayfun Coskun | Anadolu Agency | Getty ImagesNot too long ago, Virgin Orbit was in rarified air among U.S. rocket builders, and executives were in New York celebrating its public stock debut.The scene was true to the marketing pizazz that has helped Sir Richard Branson build his Virgin empire of companies, showcasing with a rocket…

Virgin Orbit, the rocket company founded by British billionaire Richard Branson, has laid off nearly 85 per cent of its workforce -- about 675 employees -- after it failed to secure a key funding.Virgin Orbit has ceased operations "for the foreseeable future", its CEO Dan Hart told employees late on Thursday."Unfortunately, we've not been able to secure the funding to provide a clear path for this company. We have no choice but to implement immediate and extremely painful changes," Hart told the employees.In a US…

Two months ago, Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit VORB -9.14% Holdings Inc. was poised to make history delivering the first satellites into orbit from the billionaire’s home country of the U.K.That high-profile launch from Cornwall, England, went badly, ending in the destruction of its satellite payload and triggering a probe into what went wrong.  Now, Virgin Orbit is in talks with two financial institutions about a bailout and has furloughed staff,…

Virgin Group founder and owner Richard Branson during Virgin Orbit’s Tubular Bells: Part One mission on June 30, 2021.Photo: Virgin OrbitVirgin Investments Limited has pumped $55 million into Virgin Orbit since November of last year, in what is a troubling sign for the fledgling satellite launch company.Cash flow problems, an achingly slow launch cadence, and a botched satellite delivery in January—these are a few of our not-so-favorite things when it comes to Virgin Orbit these days. The Richard Branson-owned company is…