The plane released the rocket,carrying nine small satellites for a mix of civilian and domestic uses. But about two hours after the plane took off,the company reported “an anomaly that has prevented us from reaching orbit”.
The plane,piloted by a Royal Air Force pilot,returned to Cornwall. The rocket and satellites were destroyed.
“We’re feeling awful,to be honest – I’m not going to lie,” Melissa Thorpe,head of Spaceport Cornwall,said on Tuesday.
“This isn’t the first time we’ve been knocked,this is the biggest definitely,but I feel OK and we’ll get up and we’ll go again,” she said.
Virgin Orbit,which was founded by British transport and telecommunications tycoon Richard Branson,previously completed four similar launches from California.
Hundreds of people gathered for the Cornwall launch had cheered when a repurposed Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 aircraft,named Cosmic Girl,took off .