BACK
BACK EVERYBODY. SO THIS IS JUST AMAZING. I WANT TO STAND IN THE WAY CHECK OUT WHAT THEY DID.
VIRGIN ORBIT LAUNCHED ITS FIRST
COMMERCIAL SATELLITE INTO
SPACE. YOU KNOW, SO THIS MEANS
A LOT. WHAT'S NEXT? WHAT DOES
IT MEAN FOR VIRGIN ORBIT? WELL
THE CEO IS JOINING US. DAN HART
IS JOINING US RIGHT NOW. SO
GOOD MORNING, DAN. DAD , HOW
EXCITING. GOOD MORNING. IT'S A
GREAT MORNING. I FIRST HAD TO
RUB MY EYES LIKE DID THIS
REALLY HAPPEN SO YOU GUYS IT
TOOK OFF YESTERDAY FROM THE
MOJAVE DESERT, SENT A SATELLITE
OUT INTO SPACE AND THIS IT WAS
ALL A 747 WAS INVOLVED. TELL US
HOW ALL OF THIS HAPPENED. HOW
DO YOU FEEL ABOUT WHAT YOU GUYS
JUST DID? WELL, ECSTATIC. FIRST
OF ALL, I'M SO PROUD OF THIS
TEAM. THEY WORKED SO HARD AND
IT'S GREAT TO SEE HAPPY
CUSTOMERS WITH THEIR SATELLITES
GENTLY PUT IN ORBIT. WE ARE IN
THE AIR LAUNCH PLATFORM SO WE
TAKE THE ROCKET UP UNDER THE
WING OF A 747 740 SEVEN THAT
USED TO CARRY PASSENGERS FOR
VIRGIN ATLANTIC. WE WE WE
TURNED A SLAB OF CONCRETE IN
THE MOJAVE AIRPORT INTO A
STAGING AREA, TOOK OFF FROM
THERE AND FLEW OUT OVER THE
PACIFIC AND YESTERDAY WE HAD A
BEAUTIFUL DAY. WOW. I MEAN
WATCHING THIS FOOTAGE IS MIND
BLOWING THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO DO
IT SO THIS USED TO BE A
COMMERCIAL PLANE AND NOW IT'S
LAUNCHING SATELLITES AND I
UNDERSTANDING THAT CORRECTLY.
THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT. IT'S THE
ULTIMATE REUSE AND IT'S A
LAUNCH PLATFORM THAT CAN TAKE
MAKE ANY AIRPORT INTO A SPACE
PORT. WHOA. I MEAN A SPACE PORT
I MEAN JUST TO MY MIND IS
TRYING TO, YOU KNOW, UNDERSTAND
ALL OF THIS COMPLETELY BUT IT'S
SO FASCINATING WHAT YOU'RE ABLE
TO DO. THIS IS YOUR SECOND
LAUNCH IN SIX MONTHS. SO TELL
US HOW YOU'RE ABLE TO MAKE THIS
ALL HAPPEN SO QUICKLY. WELL, I
MEAN IT STARTS WITH WHERE I AM
RIGHT HERE. I'M IN LONG BEACH
IN OUR FACTORY WHICH IS RIGHT
BY LONG BEACH AIRPORT WHERE WE
HAVE FIVE ROCKETS IN FLOW RIGHT
NOW, OUR NEXT ONE TO LAUNCH
THIS FALL. SO WE HAVE A GREAT
FACTORY ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING
TO MAKE ENGINES AND THE HIGH
TECH COMPOSITE WORK AND THEN
THE ROCKET COMES OUT OF HERE,
DRIVES UP CLIPS ON TO THE
AIRPLANE READY TO GO WELL AND
THESE HAVE LAUNCHED FROM THE
MOJAVE DESERT BOTH TIMES. YES.
SO FAR WE'VE LAUNCHED BOTH ARMS
FROM MOJAVE FIRST ON JANUARY
17TH AND THEN YESTERDAY WE DO
PLAN TO LAUNCH OUT OF GUAM. WE
HAVE AN AGREEMENT WITH THE UK
SPACE AGENCY TO LAUNCH OUT
OF CORNWALL. WE'RE WORKING WITH
THE JAPANESE TO LAUNCH OUT OF A
WIDER AND ALSO OUT OF BRAZIL.
SO WE PLAN ON ACTUALLY
EXPANDING OUR OPERATION TO BE
GLOBAL AND EXPLAIN HOW YOU'RE
DOING THIS. IT'S FOR
INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMERS RIGHT
NOW, IS THAT RIGHT? WELL, IT'S
FOR IT'S FOR ALL CUSTOMERS, OK
FOR COMMERCIAL SPACE COMPANY
CIVIL SPACE LIKE NASA AND THE
INTERNATIONAL SPACE AGENCY'S
AND ALSO THE NATIONAL SECURITY
COMMUNITY. WE HAD FORD VODY
SPACE PROGRAM SATELLITES ON
WITH US YESTERDAY AS WELL AS A
SATELLITE THE FIRST SATELLITE
FOR THE ROYAL NETHERLANDS AIR
FORCE AND TWO SATELLITES FOR A
COMMERCIAL POLISH COMPANY. SO
WE'RE REALLY SERVING THE WHOLE
MARKET. OK, I WAS TRYING TO
COUNT HOW MANY DID YOU SEND OFF
YESTERDAY? SEVEN. SEVEN
OF THEM. OK, GOT IT. SO THE
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY, THE
DODDY AS WELL, THAT'S PRETTY
SIGNIFICANT. I MEAN YOU ARE THE
CEO OF VIRGIN ORBIT. THIS MUST
BE JUST QUITE A YOU KNOW, GOOD
FEELING THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO
MAKE THIS HAPPEN UNDESCRIBABLE
.YOU KNOW, FIRST OF ALL, I'M
JUST SO PROUD OF THE TEAM AND
THERE'S NO FEELING LIKE SEEING
A GROUP THAT HAS WORKED SO HARD
AND WITH SUCH INTENSITY GO
THROUGH AN EVENT LIKE THIS AND
TODAY NOBODY CAN TAKE A SMILE
OFF YOUR FACE. YEAH, QUITE AN
ACCOMPLISHMENT. WHAT'S THE
MEANING OF THE MISSION'S NAME?
IT'S GOT TO BE BELLS PART ONE
TUBULAR BELLS. SO WE'RE A
VIRGIN COMPANY. RICHARD BRANSON
WAS WITH US YESTERDAY AND HAD A
GREAT TIME DURING THE LAUNCH.
WELL, TUBULAR BELLS WAS THE
VERY FIRST RECORD THAT VIRGIN
PRODUCED FOR VIRGIN RECORDS AND
SO WE'VE DECIDED TO NAME OUR
OUR MISSIONS AFTER GREAT MUSIC
AND WE'LL BE DOING THAT AS WE
GO FORWARD. YOU JUST REMINDED
ME THAT VIRGIN ORBIT THAT NAME
CAME FROM VIRGIN RECORDS. I DID
NOT EVEN PUT THAT TOGETHER AN
OBVIOUS CONNECTION, RIGHT.
TUBULAR BELLS PART WHAT I LOVE
IT. SO YOU SAID YOU HAVE
OBVIOUSLY OTHER MISSIONS
PLANNED IN OTHER COUNTRIES. IS
THAT RIGHT? WELL, WE'LL HAVE
SOME MORE HERE AT OUR NEXT ONE
WILL BE OUT OF MOJAVE AGAIN
NEXT YEAR. WE'LL START MOVING
ABROAD AS WELL. OK, VERY NICE.
WHERE CAN PEOPLE GO GET MORE
INFORMATION AND JUST LEARN MORE
ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE UP TO WHAT WE
HAVE ON OUR WEB SITE. SO VIRGIN
ORBIT DOT SO JUST COME ON
BOARD. YOU CAN READ ALL ABOUT
US. YEAH. AND THE FACT THAT ALL
OF THIS IS HAPPENING IN LONG
BEACH THERE RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE
RIGHT NOW AND THEN DRIVING THEM
OUT TO THE DESERT TO SEND THEM
OFF INTO OUTER SPACE THIS IS
INCREDIBLE. DAN, THANK YOU SO
MUCH FOR BEING ON WITH US THIS
MORNING.