Mesa factory completed
Virgin Galactic has completed its Delta spaceship manufacturing facility in Mesa, Arizona. The final-assembly facility received its certificate of occupancy in July 2024. Two hangars contain multiple bays for building and testing space vehicles.
Technical operations and manufacturing personnel are preparing to install tooling expected in Q4 2024. The company plans to begin final assembly in Q1 2025, with wing, fuselage and feathering-system subassemblies arriving for the first two Delta spaceships.
Assembly and flight-test plans
Digital twins support supplier collaboration. Completed spaceships are scheduled for ground testing before the mothership transports them to Spaceport America in New Mexico for flight testing.
Virgin Galactic expects commercial operations in 2026. Each Delta spaceship is designed for six private passengers and expected to fly up to eight missions monthly. These remain company forecasts.
Earlier facility agreement
Virgin Galactic entered its Mesa facility lease with Gateway Executive Airpark, LLC on July 14, 2022. The agreement covered approximately 151,096 square feet of office and manufacturing space at 5559 S. Sossaman Road for Delta final assembly.
The premises comprised Hangar B, approximately 35,896 square feet, and Hangar C, approximately 115,200 square feet. The lease specified a term of ten years and five months for each hangar following construction and buildout, with four extension options of five years each.
Southern California systems integration
Virgin Galactic opened its Southern California system-integration facility in May 2024. Initial subsystem testing has begun on its Iron Bird platform, with additional components scheduled for installation throughout the year to expand the range of testing.
The ground-based rig allows engineers to verify the operation of dozens of interconnected Delta subsystems early in development. Its testing scope includes:
- Avionics.
- Feather actuation.
- Pneumatics and hydraulics.
Structural verification alongside subsystem tests
A separate static test article will apply stress to major structural components, verify structural-integrity data and establish design and ultimate limit loads. This structural testing complements the Iron Bird’s subsystem work during development of the Delta fleet.
Spaceline President Mike Moses expects the test data to refine subsequent testing and streamline manufacturing and validation. He describes a transition from prototype development toward a production model.
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