VSS Unity Makes Final Commercial Flight
VSS Unity Makes Final Commercial Flight
'Galactic 07' Carries Five Research Payloads During Virgin Galactic’s Seventh Research Mission
Galactic 07, the 7th research flight to be conducted by Virgin Galactic and the 12th flight overall, took place Saturday with one researcher and three private astronauts on board. The flight took off from Spaceport America at 8:31 am MT, and Unity was released at an altitude of 44,562 feet. The spacecraft reached an apogee of 54.4 miles, landing an hour and 10 minutes after takeoff.
Watching our pioneering spaceship Unity return from space on its final commercial flight was a breathtaking and proud moment.”
Michael Colglazier, Virgin Galactic
The flight was the final mission for VSS Unity. “Watching our pioneering spaceship Unity return from space on its final commercial flight was a breathtaking and proud moment as we celebrate the ship’s unprecedented achievements in human spaceflight and build momentum for the rollout of our first Delta Class ships in 2026,” said Michael Colglazier, CEO of Virgin Galactic.
The personnel on the mission included:
Astronaut 027 – Tuva Cihangir Atasever, Turkish Space Agency (TUA) astronaut and Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3) Backup Mission Specialist
Astronaut 028 – Anand “Andy” Harish Sadhwani, California, USA
Astronaut 029 – Irving Izchak Pergament, New York, USA
Astronaut 030 – Giorgio Manenti, Italy
VSS Unity was piloted by Commander Nicola Pecile and Pilot Jameel Janjua. VMS Eve was piloted by Commander Andy Edgell and Pilot C.J. Sturckow.
Atasever flew with three human-tended experiments, including custom headgear with brain activity monitoring sensors to collect physiological data related to human spaceflight; a dosimeter; and two commercially available insulin pens to examine the ability to administer accurate insulin doses in microgravity. He also participated in four investigations carried out by Turkish researchers on the ground to understand physiological changes during suborbital spaceflight.
‘Galactic 07’ also flew two autonomous rack-mounted payloads supported by NASA’s Flight Opportunities program: a Purdue University experiment to study propellant slosh for spacecraft propulsion applications and a University of California, Berkeley experiment to test new 3D printing technology while in microgravity.
Building on VSS Unity’s record in commercial human spaceflight (32 total flights, including 12 to space), the company is now producing its fourth-generation and most advanced spaceships, the Delta Class, expected to enter commercial service in 2026.