Virgin Galactic pilot selection

The Australian news service AAP reports that pilots with Virgin Blue, the discount carrier that operates in Australia and New Zealand, have been invited to apply to become pilots for Virgin Galactic. Similar offers have been made to pilots for other Virgin Airlines; two of Virgin Blue’s 572 pilots are expected to be selected. About half of Virgin Galactic’s pilots are expected to come from its airlines, with the rest to be recruited from NASA (which has a surplus of astronauts).

Those selected will undergo a rigorous training program lasting 27 months: nine months of jet aircraft and zero-g flight training, nine months of “mission control work”, and nine months of “flying empty Virgin Galactic Spaceships into space.” The Virgin Blue pilots selected for Virgin Galactic might end up flying their current boss: Virgin Blue CEO Brett Godfrey is “booked on one of the first space passenger flights”; presumably he is one of Virgin Galactic’s 100 “Founders”.