A former Walt Disney Co. executive has been named as the new chief executive of Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc., the space company announced Wednesday. Michael Colglazier will head up the Mojave human spaceflight venture effective July 20 at a time when it is progressing through its test flight program and prepares for commercial service. Colglazier replaces George Whitesides, who will remain with Virgin Galactic as chief space officer. Colglazier joins the company from Disney, where he was most recently the president and managing director of Disney Parks International and was responsible for operations, strategy and commercial and experiential development of four theme parks and resorts. He was thrilled to join the company at this point in its journey, Colglazier said. “Like so many others, including hundreds of signed-up customers, I have been inspired by this purpose-driven, world-class brand and the incredible opportunity it offers to open space to change the world for good,” he added in a statement. Virgin Galactic is developing the six-seat Unity spacecraft to take paying passengers for a sub-orbital flight that will include a period of weightlessness. The company will complete flight tests at the Spaceport America facility in New Mexico before commencing a full commercial service for passengers and research payloads. Shares of Virgin Galactic closed up $2.52, or more than 13 percent, on Thursday to $21.07 on the New York Stock Exchange on a day when the Dow closed down 0.5 percent and the Nasdaq closed down 0.7 percent.
Former Disney Executive to Lead Virgin Galactic
