Virgin Galactic has opened a system integration facility in Southern California to support the development of its Delta-Class spaceships. The site features an Iron Bird test rig, which will allow engineers to validate avionics, hydraulics, pneumatics and feather actuation systems before flight. Over the coming year, additional components will be introduced to expand the facility's testing capabilities.

“With this approach, Virgin Galactic is moving from a prototype to a production model of developing spaceships – shaving years off the development timeline we saw with VSS Unity,” says Mike Moses, President of Virgin Galactic Spaceline. “The team has hit the ground running – with important testing already underway, supporting our ability to execute key Delta production milestones.”

Final assembly of the Delta-Class fleet will take place at Virgin Galactic’s Phoenix, Arizona facility, with the first spaceships expected to enter commercial service in 2026. Each will be designed for high-frequency operations, capable of eight spaceflights per month.

As part of its Delta-Class programme, Virgin Galactic has also partnered with Redwire Corporation to develop research payload lockers for suborbital missions. The plug-and-play lockers will support both autonomous and human-tended experiments, delivering real-time data throughout spaceflight and enabling seamless transitions to orbital platforms.

Vice President of Research Operations Sirisha Bandla says, “Our new state-of-the-art research platform, designed for compatibility with longer duration space mission locker standards, means we can offer a suborbital space lab suited for testing technologies and research in preparation for orbital, lunar or Martian missions.”

Redwire's President of In Space Industries John Vellinger adds, “We’re leveraging everything we have learned in our 35 years of outfitting crewed spacecraft to develop these lockers. Virgin Galactic’s Delta spaceships bring to market a new capability that expands the opportunities for commercial space innovation.”

Virgin Galactic has already flown dozens of payloads over seven research missions, supporting studies in biological processes, space imaging, planetary exploration, medical technology and combustion characteristics. Other experiments have examined the Overview Effect and physiological and emotional responses to spaceflight. The Delta-Class spaceships will accommodate five payload racks each, allowing up to 20 research lockers in total.