VSS Unity was Virgin Galactic’s spaceplane for its first commercial passenger flight.
The vehicle, also known as SpaceShipTwo VSS Unity, flew the Galactic 01 mission on June 29, 2023. Galactic 01 carried three Italian Air Force and National Research Council personnel, who conducted microgravity research during the suborbital flight.
VSS Unity is air-launched from the carrier aircraft VMS Eve. After release at high altitude, its hybrid rocket motor accelerates the spaceplane on a brief suborbital trajectory. The vehicle then glides back to a runway landing rather than reaching orbit.
VSS Unity followed the earlier VSS Enterprise, which was destroyed during a 2014 test accident. The names are therefore easy to mix up, but Enterprise never carried commercial passengers into space. VSS Unity was the operational vehicle used for Virgin Galactic’s passenger service.