"Virgin Galactic Investigates Dropped Alignment Pin During Space Plane Launch"

TL;DR Summary
During Virgin Galactic's Galactic 06 suborbital mission, the VMS Eve mothership lost an alignment pin used to mate with the VSS Unity space plane, prompting an FAA investigation. Despite the lost pin, the company stated that there was no danger or damage to either aircraft, and the flight was conducted safely. Virgin Galactic will conduct an investigation alongside the FAA and provide an update ahead of its next mission, Galactic 07. The FAA has grounded Virgin Galactic until the investigation is completed, and the company plans to retire its current fleet of suborbital vehicles in favor of new "Delta class" space planes.
- Virgin Galactic mothership loses alignment pin during space plane launch, FAA investigating Space.com
- Virgin Galactic investigating dropped pin on most recent suborbital flight SpaceNews
- Virgin Galactic Says Pin Detached During Recent Spaceflight NDTV
- Virgin Galactic reports dropped pin on its last flight, says it posed no safety risk Ars Technica
- Virgin Galactic reports flight-related issue to FAA Reuters.com
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