• Virgin Orbit Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: VORB) shared its readiness for the Start Me Up mission for a historic U.K. launch on January 9.

• Start Me Up is a collaborative effort between the U.K. Space Agency (UKSA), Cornwall Council, the Royal Air Force, and Virgin Orbit.

• The Start Me Up mission will carry satellites from seven customers to space, including commercial and government payloads from several nations and a collaborative U.S.-U.K. mission.

• The LauncherOne system that will conduct the mission is now a modified Boeing Co (NYSE: BA) 747, dubbed Cosmic Girl, at Spaceport Cornwall.

• Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne system completed an end-to-end launch rehearsal verifying the system's health and readiness of the team.

• Ian Annett, Deputy CEO at the U.K. Space Agency, said: "The development of new orbital launch capabilities is already generating growth, catalyzing investment, and creating jobs in Cornwall and other communities across the United Kingdom. This will lead to new careers, improved productivity, and inspire the next generation of space professionals, and this is just the beginning."

• Virgin Orbit, which usually operates from the Mojave Desert, put plans for a pre-Christmas U.K. launch on hold amid last-minute snags, Bloomberg reports.

• Price Action: VORB shares traded lower by 5.22% at $1.99 on the last check Monday.

• Photo Via Company

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