Status: 04/04/2023 10:02 a.m
The space company Virgin Orbit has filed for bankruptcy under US law. The company recently laid off 675 employees and is now planning a Chapter 11 sale.
British billionaire Richard Branson’s space company Virgin Orbit, which specializes in satellite launches, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In the US proceedings with protection from creditors’ claims, a sale of the company is to be promoted, as Virgin Orbit announced today. After a failed satellite launch in January, the company was no longer able to maintain its funding.
Almost all employees laid off
Virgin Orbit, based in Long Beach, California, was spun off from Branson’s other space company, Virgin Galactic, which, among other things, wants to offer tourist flights into space.
At the end of March, Virgin Orbit announced that it would lay off 675 employees, which corresponds to around 85 percent of the workforce. This measure is associated with costs of up to 15 million dollars for the company. Employees from all areas of the company were affected.
A procedure with bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of the US bankruptcy law is now seen as the best way for a sale, it said. Company boss Dan Hart pointed out that 33 satellites had been successfully put into orbit.
From ambitious start-up to bankruptcy
Orbit Virgin was founded in 2018 as a start-up. Aiming to break into the commercial space transport market, the company was instrumental in attempting to launch the first satellite into orbit from UK soil earlier this year. An aircraft first brought the launch vehicle to a high altitude before it was launched. But the mission failed. In mid-March, Virgin Orbit announced that it would suspend operations for the time being.