It had been selling off items it owns in a bid to survive, including its converted jet Cosmic Girl, and most of its headquarters in California.

In January, its first ever satellite mission in the UK reached space, but fell short of its target orbit.

It had been hoped the launch, called Start Me Up after the 1981 Rolling Stones hit, would turn the country into a global player - from manufacturing satellites to building rockets and creating new spaceports.

Two months later the company "paused all operations" in an apparent attempt to shore up its finances and almost all employees were laid off.

It has been a tumultuous period for the Virgin boss.

Earlier this month, Sir Richard told the BBC that he had personally lost around £1.5bn during the pandemic after lockdowns hit his airline and leisure businesses.

"There was a time when I thought we were going to lose everything", he said. However, he has managed to retain his billionaire status - he has a net worth of £2.4bn according to the latest Sunday Times Rich List.

When it became clear Virgin Orbit was unable to secure long-term funding, it filed for bankruptcy protection in the US early last month.