Future missions of Virgin Galactic's LauncherOne satellite carrier will see it 'piggybacking' on a 747 jumbo jet.

The Boeing plane, nicknamed Cosmic Girl, will be used to carry the firm's craft to high altitude before the craft blasts into space.

The 747-400 will be modified so the LauncherOne can be mounted underneath its wing, meaning the launcher has an increased maximum payload capacity of up to 881lbs (400kg).

The plane (artist's impression), nicknamed Cosmic Girl, will be used to carry the firm's LauncherOne satellite to high altitude before the craft will blast into space. The Boeing 747-400 will be modified so the LauncherOne can be mounted under its left wing, meaning the launcher has an increased payload capacity of 881lbs (400kg)

Virgin Galactic founder Sir Richard said: 'The Boeing 747 has a very special place in my heart: We began service on my first airline, Virgin Atlantic, with just one leased 747.

'I never imagined that today one of our 747s would get a second chance and help open access to space.

'I'm absolutely thrilled that Cosmic Girl can stay in the Virgin family - and truly live up to her name.'

The rocket will be mounted to the carrier aircraft under the left wing, near to where a fifth engine on the jet can be carried.

HOW COSMIC GIRL WILL DEPLOY LAUNCHERONE LauncherOne is described by the company as 'an affordable dedicated ride to orbit for small satellites' aimed at commercial and government customers, costing under $10 million dollars (£6.6 million). The rocket will be mounted to the carrier aircraft under the left wing, near to where the fifth engine on the jet is typically carried. Rather than launching from a traditional spaceport, by 'piggybacking' on the Boeing jet, LauncherOne can be deployed from commercial airports. It will be released at an altitude of approximately 35,000ft (10,668 metres). Once released from the carrier aircraft, the LauncherOne rocket will fire up its single main stage engine called the 'NewtonThree' for approximately three minutes. After stage separation, the single upper stage engine, called the 'NewtonFour' will carry the on-board satellite into orbit. This second stage will burn multiple times for almost six minutes. At the end of this sequence, LauncherOne will deploy the on-board satellite into its orbit. Both stages of LauncherOne will be safely deorbited, and the carrier aircraft will return to a predetermined airport, where it can be prepared for its next flight. Advertisement

Rather than launching from a traditional spaceport, by 'piggybacking' on the Boeing jet, LauncherOne could be deployed from commercial airports.

It will be released at an altitude of approximately 35,000ft (10,668 metres).

Once released from the jet, the LauncherOne rocket will fire up its single main stage engine, a 73,500 lbf, LOX/RP-1 rocket engine called the 'NewtonThree.'

Typically, this engine will fire for approximately three minutes.

After stage separation, the single upper stage engine, a 5,000lbf LOX/RP-1 rocket engine called the 'NewtonFour' will carry the satellite into orbit.

This second stage will burn multiple times for almost six minutes.

Both the NewtonThree and the NewtonFour have been designed, tested and built by Virgin Galactic.

At the end of this sequence, LauncherOne will deploy the on-board satellite into its orbit.

Both stages of LauncherOne will be safely deorbited, and the carrier aircraft will return to a predetermined airport, where it can be prepared for its next flight.

Initial inspections and tests of Cosmic Girl have already been completed and, prior to the start of the wing modification, a regularly scheduled maintenance check will be conducted by VT San Antonio Aerospace.

According to the company's engineers, the 747-400 is an 'ideal' launchpad because of its rocket carrying capacity.

It also has long range and all-weather capability, and most importantly, can take off from most commercial airports.

LauncherOne is described by the company as 'an affordable dedicated ride to orbit for small satellites'.

The rocket will be mounted to the carrier aircraft under the left wing, near to where the fifth engine on the jet is typically carried. This graphic reveals the stages of the launch

Initial inspections and tests of Cosmic Girl (illustrated) have already been completed. The LauncherOne is shown beneath the Boeing 747-400. It will be released at an altitude of approximately 35,000ft (10,668 metres). By 'piggybacking' on the Boeing jet, LauncherOne can be deployed commercial airports

Founder Sir Richard Branson (pictured) with the 747-400 that will be turned into a launchpad for the Virgin Galactic spaceship. The latest announcement comes after Sir Richard earlier insisted his space programme was 'back on track' following the end of an investigation in to last year's fatal Virgin Galactic crash

It is aimed at commercial and government customers and cost under $10 million (£6.6 million).

Virgin Galactic boss George Whitesides added: 'Air launch enables us to provide rapid, responsive service to our satellite customers on a schedule set by their business and operational needs, rather than the constraints of national launch ranges.

'Selecting the 747 airframe provides a dedicated platform that gives us the capacity to substantially increase our payload to orbit without increasing our prices.'

Virgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft will remain the mothership for SpaceShipTwo.

In comparison to LauncherOne, WhiteKnightTwo carries Virgin's SpaceShipTwo 50,000ft (15,240 metres), the craft then detaches and fires its rocket.

Virgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft will remain the mothership for SpaceShipTwo. So far 700 men and women from more than 50 countries have reserved places to fly on the spacecraft (artist's impression), according to the company

It begins climbing immediately for around a minute and a half, at more than three times the speed of sound.

So far 700 men and women from more than 50 countries have reserved places to fly on the spacecraft, according to the company.

The latest announcement comes after Sir Richard earlier insisted his space programme was 'back on track' following the end of an investigation in to last year's fatal Virgin Galactic crash.

VIRGIN GALACTIC 'BACK ON TRACK' AFTER FATAL CRASH The latest announcement comes after Sir Richard insisted his space programme was 'back on track' following last year's fatal Virgin Galactic crash. The spaceship broke apart over the Mojave desert during a test flight in October, killing co-pilot Michael Alsbury. An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Body found the crash was caused by a catastrophic structural failure triggered when the co-pilot unlocked the craft's braking system early. Advertisement

The spaceship broke apart over the Mojave desert during a test flight in October, killing co-pilot Michael Alsbury.

An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Body found the crash was caused by a catastrophic structural failure triggered when the co-pilot unlocked the craft's braking system early.

The system was designed to be operated by being unlocked by pulling down on a lever and then the pilot and co-pilot must pull two additional levers to operate the motors.

The crash investigation found co-pilot Michael Alsbury unlocked the system at Mach 0.92, meaning it was only held in place by its motor system during the violent forces as the spacecraft passed through the sound barrier.

As the spacecraft boosted through the sound barrier shortly after detaching from the aircraft that had carried it up to a height of 46,600ft (14,200 metres), the forces overcame the motor and moved the position of the feather system.