The private space company Virgin Galactic found another reason to worry and postpone the next flight of a suborbital spaceplane with tourists. One of the equipment suppliers reported a potential defect in one of the executive mechanisms of the control bodies.
According to the online publication SpaceNews, there is not enough specifics yet. Representatives of the company reported that a comprehensive check of the problematic systems of the SpaceShipTwo spaceplane is underway. The contractor Virgin Galactic has identified a potential defect that could create problems with the operation of the ship. Whether there is a real security threat is not specified.
It is unlikely that the situation is really serious, since Virgin Galactic is postponing the flight no further than the middle of October. This is only a little later than the previously designated start date of the Unity 23 mission — "the end of September or the beginning of October". Now employees of the company of the British billionaire Sir Richard Branson are working together with partners to determine ways to eliminate a potential defect. They need to solve, replace the problem part, make modifications, or intervention is not required at all.
The company separately notes that this problem is not related to the incident, because of which the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) initiated an investigation. Recall that after the successful first suborbital flight of SpaceShipTwo with tourists on board, information appeared that the mission did not go perfectly.
During the climb and speed, when the hybrid rocket engine of the spaceplane was still working, an indication of a deviation from the safe return trajectory (entry glide cone warning) lit up on the cockpit. The pilots worked out the alarm system in a way that was not entirely clear to an outsider — they sort of ignored it and continued the flight. Although nominally they had to turn off the supply of oxidizer to the engine and plan for the airfield.
Despite some sharp criticism of Virgin Galactic in the press after this news, it is still impossible to say for sure whether the pilots put the passengers in danger or not. This is to be determined by the FAA. The administration will analyze the behavior of the crew and make its verdict-however, no one can say for sure when this will happen: the timing of such investigations is not announced in advance.
The SpaceShipTwo flight profile assumes an altitude climb from 18 to 80 kilometers-first due to the operation of the rocket engine, and then by inertia. If during this stage the spaceplane deviates too much from the trajectory, there is a chance that it will not be able to plan for the landing strip later. This is exactly what the entry glide cone warning signaled.
The company does not deny that the alarm was triggered, but notes that the deviation outside the airspace allocated by the FAA lasted no more than 101 seconds and did not pose a danger. The reason for the "panic" of automation was high-altitude winds, and the pilots completely controlled the situation and made the correct decision.
