Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc.

Good afternoon. My name is Joel and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I'd like to welcome everyone to Virgin Galactic's first quarter 2023 earnings conference call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speaker's remarks, there will be a question and answer session. If you'd like to ask a question during this time, simply press star followed by the number one on your telephone keypad. If you'd like to withdraw your question, please press star followed by the number two. Thank you. I'll now turn the call over to Eric Cerny, Vice President of Investor Relations.

Thank you. Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to Virgin Galactic's first quarter 2023 earnings conference call. On the call with me today are Michael Colglazier, Chief Executive Officer, and Doug Ahrens, Chief Financial Officer. Following prepared remarks from Michael and Doug, we will open the call for questions. Our press release and slide presentation that will accompany today's remarks are available on our investor relations website. Please see slide two of the presentation for our safe harbor disclaimer. During today's call, we may make certain forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions, and as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements made on this call. For more information about these risks and uncertainties, please refer to the risk factors in the company's SEC filings made from time to time. You were cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and the company specifically disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking statements that may be discussed during this call, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Please also note that we will refer to certain non-GAAP financial information on today's call. please refer to our earnings release for a reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial metrics. With that, I would like to turn the call over to Michael. Michael, please go ahead.

Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining us on our first quarter earnings call. We last spoke with you just two months ago, and within that short period of time, we have made significant progress. As you saw yesterday, we are at a defining point for the company. We announced our return to space with our Unity 25 mission, planned for late May, and it will build from there. We will be opening access to space, employing scientific researchers and civilian astronauts on a regular basis, beginning with our Galactic One flight, planned for late June. Turning to our agenda on slide three, I'll start with our commercial space line operations, followed by an update on our future fleet development. Before turning the call over to Doug, who will provide a financial review and commentary on our economic model. Following our prepared remarks, we'll open the call to take your questions. So let's turn to slide four, commercial space line operations. Our team completed ground testing of our mothership in February, including fit checks where we validated modifications to the upgraded launch pylon on VMS Eve. We then conducted several validation flights with VMS Eve in both solo and mated configurations, These flights validated enhancements that were made to increase E's flight rate capability and overall service life. Test points included functional checks of the new horizontal stabilizers, upgraded avionics and mechanical systems. On April 26th, we successfully completed a glide flight above Spaceport America, taking Unity up to 47,000 feet and releasing the vehicle to glide back to the runway. That flight verified the performance of VSS Unity in the glide phase. including the handling qualities and flight controls of the spaceship. The ability to conduct these tests without the need for rocket power further highlights one of the many benefits of our distinctive flight system. We are very pleased with the way both our ships performed, and the flight provided the necessary data to clear the vehicles for our next mission, Unity 25. Unity 25, scheduled for late May, will mark our return to space with two pilots and four Virgin Galactic mission specialists making a final assessment of the full space flight and customer experience before opening commercial service later this quarter. Our first commercial flight, Galactic One, is planned for late June and will be a scientific research flight with members of the Italian Air Force. We plan to follow Galactic One with both civilian astronaut and research customers flying on regular intervals thereafter. Turning to slide five, As we shared in February, our commercial space line has two major areas of focus. The first is flying our current ships, VMS Eve and VSS Unity, on a recurring basis. We are removing barriers to allow private citizens and scientific researchers unprecedented access to space. The second focus is progressing the development of our future fleet, particularly the Delta-class spaceships, which will be the key driver of revenue growth and profitability as we scale the business over the long term. On our last call, we shared a high-level overview of the production roadmap associated with this multi-year fleet development program. With our manufacturing strategy and primary suppliers in place, 2023 is focused on completing designs for the Delta spaceships, building the required tooling, and beginning the parts fabrication for the ships. As we move into 2024, we anticipate parts fabrication will continue and the assembly phase for the Delta-class spaceships will also begin using the sub-assemblies from our suppliers. We are working through the interior design, production layout, and fit-out phases of our manufacturing facility in Phoenix, Arizona to support the final assembly of the Deltas. This facility is expected to be operational in 2024. We can continue to operate on a timeline that supports testing in 2025 in advance of the first Delta ship entering commercial service in 2026. Doug is going to share some of the compelling economics behind the Delta program in his financial review. Given the strong returns we see in the Delta class, investing in this program is our top priority to drive future growth and profitability. At the same time, we recognize that financial markets are more challenged today, and this requires us to maintain optionality, exercise cost discipline, and be strategic in how we deploy our capital. As we said before, we have flexibility around the sequencing of our various programs, and Doug will be able to share an example as part of his remarks. And with that, Doug, let's turn the call over to you.