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{{Short description|Upcoming class of spaceplanes by Virgin Galactic}}
{{Infobox individual space vehicle
| name                = SpaceShip III
| native_name         = <!-- vehicle's native name, if different from the English name -->
| mission             = <!-- the mission the vehicle is part of, usually only relevant for a vehicle not intended to be reused -->
| image               = <!-- omit the "file" prefix -->
| caption             = <!-- image caption -->
| alt                 = <!-- alt text for main image -->
| other names         = <!--other names (nicknames, nose art names) this vehicle is known by-->
| type                = Spaceplane
| class               = <!--class of vehicle-->
| manufacturer        = Virgin Galactic
| construction_number = <!-- manufacturer's construction number -->
| construction_date   = <!-- either roll-out date or span of time for lengthy projects, whichever seems more appropriate -->
| civil_registration  = <!-- any civil registrations carried by this vehicle -->
| dimensions          = <!-- dimensions of the vehicle, use only for miscellaneous details of the vehicle dimensions -->
| length              = <!-- length of the vehicle -->
| diameter            = <!-- diameter of the vehicle -->
| height              = <!-- height of the vehicle -->
| dry_mass            = <!-- dry mass of the vehicle -->
| launch_mass         = <!-- launch mass of the vehicle -->
| landing_mass        = <!-- landing mass of the vehicle -->
| power               = <!-- power of the vehicle -->
| first_flight        = <!-- first flight -->
| first_flight_date   = <!-- date of first flight -->
| launch_date         = <!-- launch date if the vehicle is not intended to be reused -->
| launch_site         = <!-- launch site of the vehicle -->
| owners              = 
| last_flight         = <!-- last flight -->
| last_flight_date    = <!-- date of last flight -->
| landing_date        = <!-- landing date if the vehicle is not intended to be reused -->
| landing_site        = <!-- landing site of the vehicle -->
| flights             = <!-- number of flights made by this vehicle, usually only relevant for a vehicle intended to be reused -->
| total_hours         = <!-- total number of hours flown by this vehicle -->
| distance_travelled  = <!-- total distance travelled by this vehicle, that could be either travelling through space or on an extraterrestrial body -->
| distance_traveled   = <!-- American alias of the above -->
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| docking_target      = <!-- the space vehicle the vehicle has been docked to, likewise for "docking2_target" -->
| status              = <!-- status for an vehicle still in service -->
| fate                = Cancelled
| preservation        = <!-- where this vehicle is currently preserved (if it is) -->
| instruments         = <!--a list of instruments on the vehicle-->
| insignia            = <!--omit the "file" prefix-->
| insignia_size       = <!--include px/em; defaults to 180px-->
| insignia_upright    = <!--insignia scaling factor, preferred over insignia_size-->
| insignia_alt        = <!--image alt text-->
| insignia_caption    = <!--image caption-->
}}

'''SpaceShip III''' ('''SS3''', also with Roman numeral: '''SSIII'''; formerly '''SpaceShipThree''') was an upcoming class of [[spaceplane]]s by [[Virgin Galactic]] to follow [[SpaceShipTwo]]. It was first teased on the Virgin Galactic [[Twitter]] account on 25 February 2021 announcing the rollout of the first SpaceShip III plane on 30 March 2021.<ref name=Twitter-20210225>{{cite tweet | author=Virgin Galactic | user=VirginGalactic | number=1365067875648737282 |title=The Future of the Fleet. Rollout, March 30th.}}</ref>

By June 2024, development of the two SpaceShip III vehicles, VSS ''Imagine'' and VSS ''Inspire'' was canceled, with the intention of using the vehicles for ground testing and development for the successor ''Delta''-class spacecraft.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sheetz |first=Michael |website=CNBC |date=13 June 2024 |title=Investing in Space: Virgin Galactic enters spaceflight hiatus after retiring Unity |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2024/06/13/investing-in-space-virgin-galactic-enters-spaceflight-hiatus.html  }}</ref> So in the end, no SpaceShip III vehicles were completed or flown (not flown in any way, i.e. no captive carry flight, no glide flight, no powered flight nor any other type of flight).

==Concept evolution==
The purpose originally proposed for SpaceShipThree in 2005 was for commercial [[orbital spaceflight]], as part of a program called "Tier 2" by [[Burt Rutan]] founder of [[Scaled Composites]].<ref name=fg20050823>{{cite news |title= SpaceShipThree poised to follow if SS2 succeeds |publisher= FlightGlobal |work= Flight International |date= 23 August 2005 |url= http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2005/08/23/201097/spaceshipthree-poised-to-follow-if-ss2-succeeds.html |access-date= 2008-01-25 }}</ref><ref name=Space-2006-08-11>{{cite news |url= http://www.space.com/2728-burt-rutan-civilian-spaceflight-breakthroughs-spaceshiptwo.html |title= Burt Rutan on Civilian Spaceflight, Breakthroughs, and Inside SpaceShipTwo |author= Leonard David |date= 11 August 2006 |publisher= [[Space.com]] }}</ref>

By 2008, Scaled Composites had reduced those plans and articulated a conceptual design wherein the SpaceShipThree vehicles were to be used for transportation through [[point-to-point suborbital spaceflight]] traveling outside the [[Earth's atmosphere|atmosphere]] with the spacecrafts providing, for example, a two-hour trip on the [[Kangaroo Route]] (from [[London]] to [[Sydney]] or [[Melbourne]]).<ref name=fg200802>[http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/hyperbola/2008/02/spaceshipthree-revealed.html SpaceShipThree revealed?], FlightGlobal Hyperbola, Rob Coppinger, 29 Feb 2008</ref><!-- There is no source the shows that Tier Two, or any other older/conceptual "Tier n" program from the Burt Rutan era at Scaled, has survived into 2010+ or into the current (2015) version of Scaled Composites priorities.  Moreover, there is no sourced material that shows Virgin Galactic is using any of the "Tier n" program nomenclature for their particular company purposes and objectives. -->

Scaled was sold to [[Northrop Grumman]] in 2007,<ref name=ABQbusi1st-20070827> {{cite news |url= https://www.bizjournals.com/albuquerque/stories/2007/08/27/daily1.html |title= Northrop buys the rest of Scaled Composites |publisher= Albuquerque Business First |agency= Business Journals |date= 27 August 2007 }} </ref> and references to further work on a conceptual Scaled SS3 ended at some point afterwards from Scaled. Scaled was realigned by Northrop Grumman in 2015 as a research unit.<ref name=FlightGlobal-20150806> {{cite web |url= https://www.flightglobal.com/northrop-realigns-scaled-composites-under-advanced-research-unit/117876.article |title= Northrop realigns Scaled Composites under advanced research unit |author= James Drew |date= 6 August 2015 |publisher= Flight Global }} </ref> Virgin Galactic acquired full control of [[The Spaceship Company]] in 2012, the manufacturer of SS2.<ref name=BW-20121005> {{cite news |url= https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20121005005907/en/Virgin-Galactic-Acquires-Full-Ownership-of-The-Spaceship-Company |title= Virgin Galactic Acquires Full Ownership of The Spaceship Company |date= 5 October 2012 |publisher= Business Wire }} </ref> The technology was built upon the base technology owned by [[Mojave Aerospace Ventures]] of [[Paul Allen]], originally licensed in 2004.<ref> {{cite web |url= https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1706946/000119312519215509/d785777dex1027.htm |id= EX-10.27 |title= Exhibit 10.27: Spacecraft Technology License Agreement |publisher= U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission }} </ref><ref name=SpaceRef-20040927>{{cite news |url= http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=15138 |title= Virgin Group Sign Deal with Paul G. Allen's Mojave Aerospace |date= 27 September 2004 |publisher= SpaceRef }}{{Dead link|date=October 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> As Allen died in 2018,<ref name=NYT-20181015> {{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/15/obituaries/paul-allen-dead.html |title= Paul G. Allen, Microsoft's Co-Founder, Is Dead at 65 |author= Steve Lohr |date= 15 October 2018 |work= New York Times }} </ref> subsequent space activities of the [[Vulcan Inc.|Vulcan Group]] went inactive.

By 2016, [[Richard Branson]] was still planning to have a point-to-point sub-orbital spaceliner follow-up to SpaceShipTwo, for [[Virgin Galactic]] and [[The Spaceship Company]].<ref name=Reuters-2016-02-19>{{cite news |url= https://www.reuters.com/article/us-space-virgin-galactic-idUSKCN0VS00F |title= Branson's Virgin Galactic moves to return to space race |date= 19 February 2016 |author= Irene Klotz |publisher= [[Reuters]] }}</ref>

==Revised concept==
The SpaceShip III vehicle concept was revised to provide just a few minutes of weightlessness and views for space tourists for Virgin Galactic, and was meant to be a production version of [[SpaceShipTwo]],<ref name=S300321>{{cite web |url=https://www.space.com/virgin-galactic-unveils-spaceship-iii-spacecraft |title=Meet VSS Imagine: Virgin Galactic unveils its first SpaceShip III spacecraft |website=[[Space.com]] |date=30 March 2021}}</ref> with improved maintenance and flight rate performance. It did not have point to point transportation capabilities as previously envisioned in 2016.<ref name=Reuters-2016-02-19/>

In early 2021, Virgin Galactic teased an upcoming vehicle on their Twitter account with the name shown in stylized font as "SPACESHIP 3".<ref name="Twitter-20210225" />

==Development==
The first Spaceship III, [[VSS Imagine|VSS ''Imagine'']] suborbital spaceplane for [[Virgin Galactic]], was announced on 25 February 2021 and was rolled out on 30 March 2021. On that occasion, it was indicated there was ground testing to be done before glide test flights could commence, no earlier than the summer of 2021.<ref name=S300321 /> ''Imagine'' was one of two SpaceShip III class spacecraft on order by Virgin Galactic, the second being [[VSS Inspire|VSS ''Inspire'']].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Roulette|first=Joey|date=30 March 2021|title=Virgin Galactic unveils new SpaceShip III|url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/3/30/22356889/virgin-galactic-unveils-new-spaceship-iii-three-3|access-date=30 March 2021}}</ref>

==List of vehicles==
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!| Name
!| Unveil date
!| In-service date
!| Out-of-service date
!class=unsortable| Notes
!class=unsortable|
|-
|| {{sort|Imagine, VSS|{{ship|VSS|Imagine}}}}
|| 2021
| Never
| Never
|| First SSIII
|| <ref name=TC-20210330> {{cite web |url= https://techcrunch.com/2021/03/30/virgin-galactic-debuts-its-first-third-generation-spaceship-vss-imagine/ |title= Virgin Galactic debuts its first third-generation spaceship, 'VSS Imagine' |author= Darrell Etherington  |date= 30 March 2021 |publisher= TechCrunch }} </ref> 
|-
|| {{sort|Inspire, VSS|{{ship|VSS|Inspire}}}}
| Never
| Never
| Never
|| Second announced SSIII
|| <ref name=TC-20210330/>
|-
|}

== See also ==
* [[Stratolaunch Systems]]
* [[Supersonic transport]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn7897-space-tourism-companies-aiming-for-orbit.html Space tourism companies aiming for orbit] (New Scientist Space, 8/24/2005)

{{Virgin Galactic}}
{{The Spaceship Company}}
{{Scaled Composites}}
{{Spaceplanes}}
{{Space tourism}}
{{Reusable launch systems}}
{{Crewed spacecraft}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spaceship 3}}
[[Category:Spaceplanes]]
[[Category:Space tourism]]
[[Category:Air launch to orbit]]
[[Category:Space access]]
[[Category:Scaled Composites]]
[[Category:Crewed spacecraft]]
[[Category:Reusable launch systems]]
[[Category:Rocket-powered aircraft]]
[[Category:Experimental vehicles]]
[[Category:American spacecraft]]
[[Category:Suborbital spaceflight]]
[[Category:Vehicles introduced in 2021]]

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