Virgin Orbit’s first UK space launch delayed until 2023 after licence setback

But the announcement comes after months of previous delays. Initially, it was hoped that the launch would take place over the summer 2022 to honour Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee.

Dr Paul Bate, Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency, previously told Express.co.uk: “Her Majesty the Queen has witnessed the birth and growth of the UK space sector during her 70-year reign, so it’s wonderful that the Platinum Jubilee will be celebrated in the same year as the first satellite launch from British soil.

“The Queen has regularly demonstrated an interest in space, from meeting with Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the Moon, in 1969, to celebrating British Science Week last year.”

But the UK’s official space regulator, the Civil Aviation Authority has stressed that the regulation process is not a “barrier” to the UK space sector’s progress. 

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Article source: https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1706989/Virgin-Orbit-UK-space-launch-Richard-Branson-latest