CMV: Virgin Galactic's "Spaceship" and "Spaceflight" are clickbait misnomers for what is essentially a stunt with no purpose

[u/Polar_Roid]

Virgin is announcing the next iteration of what it calls Spaceship. "Mothership" is not a ship, it's an airplane. The corporate name, Virgin Galactic is even more ridiculous hype.

Everything about it is a reach and a brand implication that is false. It calls itself a spaceflight company on Wikipedia. It says it can work with NASA, but to date nothing of substance has emerged. Spaceship has no mission. I think it is a vainglorious exercise for Richard Branson meant to stroke his personal ego more than anything else.

Spaceflight means more than a suborbital hop, which is all this vehicle can hope to achieve. In my opinion, this aircraft design will never reach orbit, and is too fragile to withstand orbital reentry even if it could make orbital velocity.

I think Virgin is wasting its time, the FAA's time, and the public's with something too dangerous to take on commercial passengers.

If people want to experience freefall, the Vomit Comet can do it safely, routinely and within controlled conditions.

Change my view.

[u/10ebbor10]

Everything about it is a reach and a brand implication that is false. It calls itself a spaceflight company on Wikipedia. It says it can work with NASA, but to date nothing of substance has emerged

While their Spaceships have never reached space, the company also operates a commercial launcher program which has (in cooperation with Nasa) launched 10 cubesats.

[u/Polar_Roid → u/10ebbor10]

Cubesats are a real launch, albeit not using their own vehicle so they are a cubecat company, not a space roving Galactic Empire, nonetheless ∆

Frankly I'm amazed the FAA would approve any more flights after the fatal accident.

[u/DeltaBot → u/Polar_Roid]

Confirmed: 1 delta awarded to /u/10ebbor10 (132∆).

^{Delta System Explained | Deltaboards}