(Washington, DC) — The FAA will be investigating Virgin Galactic’s recent space voyage. The agency confirmed it’s launching an investigation into Richard Branson’s flight to space, claiming the rocket-powered plane operated by his company, Virgin Galactic, veered off course during its descent. The FAA’s announcement came not long after a reporter with the New Yorker claimed warning lights had shown up on the dashboard of Virgin Galactic’s ‘SpaceShipTwo,’ signaling the vehicle was on a wayward trajectory. A statement released by billionaire Branson’s company acknowledged the flight “deviated” from the initial plan, and the spacecraft did drop below the altitude it was approved to fly at for just under two minutes.
Virgin Galactic spokesperson Barney Gimbel confirmed in an email to CNN the trajectory of the flight did change, adding the pilots were modifying the flight path to adjust their journey. Gimbel says the pilots “did exactly as they were trained and followed procedures.” Branson’s flight was only the fourth trip to space that Virgin Galactic has successfully completed, following a tragic 2014 test flight that killed one pilot and badly injured another. Of those four trips, at least two have faced serious safety issues.