It was mission terminated for Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit on Monday, after the company failed in its first attempt to launch a rocket into orbit from a Boeing 747 aircraft.
In what was to be a test of the Californian company's plan to launch satellites into space, LauncherOne – a 21-metre test rocket – was planned to blast into space after being dropped from underneath the wing of Cosmic Girl, the company's modified aircraft.
The drop was successful and the rocket's engine ignited, but LauncherOne then suffered what Virgin Orbit is calling an in-flight anomaly, forcing the crew to abort the mission.
The aircraft and all crew on-board landed safely back at Mojave Air and Space port in southern California and there was no trip to space for LauncherOne this time.
Despite this, it wasn't an entirely wasted mission for the team at Virgin Orbit.
Not all bad news
The satellite launch company successfully completed all of its pre-launch procedures, the captive carry flight out to the drop site, clean telemetry lock from multiple dishes, a smooth pass through the racetrack, terminal count and a clean release.
After being released from the carrier aircraft, the LauncherOne rocket successfully lighted its booster engine on cue – the first time the company had attempted an in-air ignition.
"Our team performed their prelaunch and flight operations with incredible skill today. Test flights are instrumented to yield data and we now have a treasure trove of that. We accomplished many of the goals we set for ourselves, though not as many as we would have liked," said Virgin Orbit chief executive, Dan Hart.
"Our next rocket is waiting. We will learn, adjust and begin preparing for our next test, which is coming up soon," added Hart.
Teething problems
Elon Musk, SpaceX’s founder, who successfully launched rockets in orbit in 2008, sympathised with the Virgin Orbit team on twitter.
The tech billionaire and aerospace chief executive tweeted his sympathy for the failed mission, reminding everyone that it took Space X four attempts to complete a similar launch successfully. .
Virgin Orbit first successfully dropped the 20-metre rocket from the wing of Cosmic Girl in July last year.
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
The specs
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Know your Camel lingo
The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home
Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless
Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers
Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s
Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
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