After a nearly two-year pause in flights, starting after a deviation from controlled airspace during Sir Richard Branson’s flight in July 2021, the Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo VSS Unity made its first powered flight since the eventful Unity 22 mission.
The Unity 25 mission, like Unity 22, had a full crew complement of six. Two pilots and four Virgin Galactic employees were on board. The employees tested out the customer experience prior to the beginning of commercial operations.
VSS Unity, slung underneath the VMS Eve White Knight Two mothership, took off from the Spaceport America complex near Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, Thursday. After takeoff, VMS Eve climbed to an altitude of approximately 14,325 meters (47,000 feet) before releasing VSS Unity.