Scaled Composites is reportedly being dropped from testing Virgin Galactic’s new SpaceShipTwo (SS2) rocket.
Virgin Galactic and Scaled Composites have been working together since 2005, to build and test SpaceShipTwo .
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Scaled Composites president Kevin Mickey told Los Angeles Times that the company will no longer be engaged in SS2 testing and would work as a consultant to Virgin Galactic.
The first test flight of the SpaceShipTwo was conducted by Scaled Composites on 31 October 2014.
However, the flight broke-up in mid-air over the Mojave Desert, killing one pilot and injuring the other.
A report by the National Transportation Safety Board showed that co-pilot Michael Alsbury unlocked the feathering system early but did not send a second command to move a second lever.
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By GlobalDataFollowing the SS2 crash, Virgin modified the spacecraft based on the investigation findings.
Virgin Galactic president and CEO George Whitesides said that the tests of the new spaceship will be conducted by the company’s own team of pilots.
The SS2 is currently under construction in a hangar in Mojave.
Whitesides said: "My guess is that we stay involved with Scaled for years to come."
Virgin Galactic has appointed Mark ‘Forger’ Stucky as pilot to its commercial flight team responsible for flying WhiteKnightTwo and SpaceShipTwo.
