Future Retirement Success
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks

Future Retirement Success

Business

Virgin Orbit stops operations and furloughs almost all staff

by March 16, 2023
March 16, 2023
Virgin Orbit stops operations and furloughs almost all staff

Virgin Orbit has paused its operations and furloughed its workforce as it hunts for a funding lifeline.

The satellite launch company, based in California, will put all work on hold for at least a week with just a skeleton team remaining at work.

Bosses told employees at an all-staff meeting on Wednesday that the remainder of the workforce will be put on unpaid furlough, although employees can cash in annual leave.

The decision comes after Virgin Orbit’s attempt to make the first satellite launch from UK soil in January failed.

The company’s chief executive, Dan Hart, told staff that putting them on furlough would buy time to finalise a new investment plan, Reuters reported. Staff are expected to be updated next week.

The pause spooked investors, and sent shares down 18.8% to 82 cents. The stock, listed on the US Nasdaq exchange, is down 44% this year.

The company said: “Virgin Orbit is initiating a company-wide operational pause, effective March 16, 2023, and anticipates providing an update on go-forward operations in the coming weeks.”

Thousands of people gathered near Newquay in Cornwall in January to witness the historic Start Me Up mission, which took off from Spaceport Cornwall, blasting nine satellites into orbit.

A converted Boeing 747 called Cosmic Girl took off but the rocket carrying the first satellites launched from British soil failed to reach orbit and was lost. Cosmic Girl successfully released its rocket, called LauncherOne, carrying a payload of nine satellites off the south coast of Ireland.

But shortly afterwards, Virgin Orbit announced that there had been “an anomaly” and the rocket failed to reach the required altitude. The rocket and satellites were lost.

Virgin Orbit said that its investigation into failure of the mission is “nearly complete” and that “our next production rocket with the needed modification incorporated is in final stages of integration and test”.

Virgin Orbit was founded by the billionaire Richard Branson and is 75% owned by Virgin Investments. Branson this month put a further $5m into the company, bringing his investments in the venture to $60m over the past four months.

Read more:
Virgin Orbit stops operations and furloughs almost all staff

0
FacebookTwitterGoogle +Pinterest
previous post
Are Facebook Post Likes a Reliable Metric for Measuring Success on Social Media?
next post
The Banking Crisis: How To Make Your Portfolio Stable

You may also like

Retailers’ profit optimism hits highest level in a...

March 31, 2025

UK Government helps IT company break into Africa...

December 19, 2022

Bentley pushes ahead with EV shift despite resistance...

March 20, 2025

GrowUp Secures £38M Investment from Generate Capital to...

July 17, 2024

Major Record Labels Launch Landmark AI Copyright Lawsuit

June 25, 2024

UK Economic Growth Forecast Upgraded as Optimism Rises

June 6, 2024

The Rise of Digital Incentives: How Businesses Can...

December 2, 2024

Markets rally as US court blocks Trump tariffs,...

May 29, 2025

UK Retail Sales Stall in March Despite Early...

April 19, 2024

Optimising Pallet Delivery for Business Success

February 2, 2024

    Get free access to all of the retirement secrets and income strategies from our experts! or Join The Exclusive Subscription Today And Get the Premium Articles Acess for Free

    By opting in you agree to receive emails from us and our affiliates. Your information is secure and your privacy is protected.

    Recent Posts

    • TIMELINE: Inside the evolving relationship between Trump and Musk from first term to this week’s fallout

      June 7, 2025
    • Deadly drone wars are already here and the US is horribly unprepared

      June 7, 2025
    • Week Ahead: NIFTY’s Behavior Against This Level Crucial As The Index Looks At Potential Resumption Of An Upmove

      June 7, 2025
    • FLASHBACK: Musk accused Trump, GOP leaders of not wanting to cut spending — here’s where they said they would

      June 7, 2025
    • ‘Right down the line’: Medicaid reform in ‘big, beautiful bill’ divides lawmakers by party

      June 7, 2025
    • FAST distribution and IA

      June 7, 2025

    Categories

    • Business (8,152)
    • Investing (2,019)
    • Politics (15,562)
    • Stocks (3,135)
    • About us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Disclaimer: futureretirementsuccess.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

    Copyright © 2025 futureretirementsuccess.com | All Rights Reserved