The company is now one step closer to giving this audacious plan a go, after successfully integrating its LauncherOne rocket into its Cosmic Girl mothership ahead of the first test flights.

Virgin Orbit is another Virgin spinoff that, much like its close relative Virgin Galactic, is hoped to lift Branson's business operations out beyond the stratosphere. While Virgin Galactic is built to take tourists to space, Virgin Orbit will instead focus on delivering customer payloads into orbit.