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By HARRY CLARKE
THE Wagner Corporation has announced a new partnership with Virgin Orbit that will see satellites launched from the Wellcamp Airport outside Toowoomba.
Virgin Orbit, an international space program owned by celebrity billionaire Richard Branson, uses rockets fired from 747 aircraft to launch satellites into pace for climate monitoring, telecommunications services, asset and tracking and other commercial activities.
Under a memorandum of understanding with the Wagner Corporation, Wellcamp Airport will become just third location worldwide alongside Cornwall in the UK and California in the United States to perform orbital launches using Virgin Orbit’s Launcher One aircraft.
“I’d have to say the state government have been very proactive with this, they’ve been a great help to bring ourselves and Virgin together to make this a reality,” Wagner Corporation John Wagner told ABC radio.
“It further cements our position around the world … this is a global development as an aerospace defence precinct. We’re very excited to be part of it.”
WATCH: Virgin Orbit satellite launch
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Stakeholders are now working to ensure approvals and regulations are in place to allow the rockets and satellites to be assembled at Wellcamp, attached to aircraft and launched from over the Pacific Ocean at about 35,000 feet.
Wagner said plans were in place to launch a test launch to occur in 2024, with a permanent horizontal launch site to follow within three years.
“Virgin are very professional, they’ve got two other space bases, one in the Mojave Desert and one in Cornwall in the UK, so they certainly know what they’re doing and are very successful in this market,” he said.
Virgin Orbit chief executive Dan Hart told ABC radio the company was thrilled to be working alongside the Wagner Corporation to bring the first national orbital launch to Australia.
“Combining their deep knowledge of infrastructure development and affinity for aerospace with our proven, responsive LauncherOne system, we have all the ingredients to bring spaceflight to Queensland,” he said.
