Item 8.01 Other Events.
On January 9, 2023, Virgin Orbit Holdings, Inc. (the "Company" or "Virgin
Orbit") initiated its Start Me Up mission orbital launch attempt of its
LauncherOne system from Spaceport Cornwall in the UK. After successfully
proceeding through pre-launch operations and taking off as planned from the
runway at Spaceport Cornwall, Virgin Orbit's carrier aircraft traveled to the
drop zone selected for this mission and successfully released the rocket.
The rocket subsequently ignited its first stage engine, thereby, successfully
completing the stage one burn. Initial data assessments indicate that the first
stage of the rocket performed as expected, the rocket reached space altitudes,
and stage separation, ignition of the upper stage, and fairing separation
similarly occurred per the planned mission timeline.
Thereafter, at some point during the rocket's flight through space, the upper
stage experienced an anomaly. This anomaly prematurely ended the first burn of
the upper stage. This anomalous event ended the mission, with the rocket
components and payload descending to Earth within the approved safety corridor
without having achieved orbit. Virgin Orbit's carrier aircraft and its crew
returned safely to Spaceport Cornwall after the anomalous event. Extensive
telemetry coverage for the flight allowed for the collection of a significant
amount of data during the mission, enabling Virgin Orbit's engineers and review
board members to start their analyses immediately upon detection of the
anomaly.
Virgin Orbit has initiated a formal investigation into the source of the second
stage failure. A fault analysis and investigation of the anomalous event will be
conducted with government insight, and implementation of all required,
corrective actions identified during the investigation will be completed prior
to initiation of Virgin Orbit's next flight endeavor. Virgin Orbit is continuing
to process its next scheduled rocket through final integration and checkout
ahead of its upcoming mission, which is planned to occur from the Mojave Air and
Space Port in California.
Virgin Orbit also anticipates returning to Spaceport Cornwall for additional
launches, and is in active discussions with key government and commercial
stakeholders in the UK to start planning mission opportunities for as soon as
later this year.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This Current Report on Form 8-K contains certain forward-looking statements
within the meaning of the federal securities laws. The Company intends such
forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for
forward-looking statements contained in Section 27A of the Securities Act of
1933, as amended (the "Securities Act") and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). All statements contained
in this Current Report on Form 8-K other than statements of historical fact
should be considered forward-looking statements, including, without limitation,
statements regarding the Company's expectations regarding the timing and results
of the Company's investigation regarding the Start Me Up mission, timing and
locations of future launches and the reliability and outcome of future launch
systems and missions. These forward-looking statements generally are identified
by the words "believe," "project," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend,"
"strategy," "future," "opportunity," "plan," "may," "should," "will," "would,"
"will be," "will continue," "will likely result," and similar expressions.
Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements
about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and,
as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause
actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in
this Current Report on Form 8-K, including but not limited to the ability of
Virgin Orbit to access sources of capital; its ability to grow market share in
the developing space economy; market acceptance of its current and planned
products and services and ability to achieve sufficient production volumes, as
well as the factors, risks and uncertainties included in the Company's Quarterly
Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2022 as well as
in the Company's subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(the "SEC"), accessible on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov and the Investor
Information section of the Company's website at www.virginorbit.com.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are
cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and Virgin
Orbit assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future
events, or otherwise. Virgin Orbit gives no assurance that it will achieve its
expectations.
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