In 2014, Virgin Galactic experienced a serious crash during a test flight of the SpaceShipTwo space tourism vessel which resulted in the death of one pilot, and serious injuries to the other (Witze, 2014a). This event caused setbacks both to Virgin Galactic and the commercial space tourism industry. Without the successful use of crisis communication by Virgin Galactic, this situation could have resulted in significantly worse consequences. News outlets were quick to jump onto the story, made worse because this was the second space-related crash that week following the explosion of the unmanned craft Antares (Witze, 2014b).

Immediately following the crash, the Virgin Group (parent company of Virgin Galactic) shared details of the crash and displayed a genuine concern for the pilots, their families, and all those affected by the tragedy. Further, the founder Sir Richard Branson flew to the scene of the accident, immediately took responsibility for the situation, and was active on social media sharing updates (see Figure 1 & 2). The success of Virgin Galactic in maintaining a positive response to the crisis can be attributed to the immediacy of their response, the accessibility of messaging, acceptance of responsibility, transparency with the public, and a concern for the loss of human life.