Scaled Composites – Spaceflight Now

Stratolaunch under new ownership

October 11, 2019 Stephen Clark

Stratolaunch said Friday that the company has “transitioned ownership” a year after the death of Paul Allen, the company’s billionaire founder who funded the construction of the world’s largest airplane for an airborne satellite launcher.

Photos: Stratolaunch’s giant airplane flies over Mojave

April 13, 2019 Stephen Clark

Stratolaunch’s rocket carrier jet, the largest aircraft in the world by wing span, took off Saturday morning from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California for its first test flight.

World’s largest airplane completes first flight

April 13, 2019 Stephen Clark

Built for hauling rockets aloft to launch satellites, the world’s biggest airplane landed Saturday after a widely-anticipated test flight over California’s Mojave Desert, six months after the death of billionaire benefactor Paul Allen clouded the future of the project.

Stratolaunch announces plan to fly with Pegasus rockets

October 10, 2016 Stephen Clark

Stratolaunch Systems, a company backed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, will launch Pegasus XL rockets produced by Orbital ATK from the world’s largest airplane as officials shift focus toward deploying lighter satellites into orbit.

Video shows SpaceShipTwo just before fatal crash

July 29, 2015 Stephen Clark

A video released by the National Transportation Safety Board shows the SpaceShipTwo rocket plane drop from its carrier aircraft, ignite its motor, and prematurely engage its braking system just before disintegrating high above California’s Mojave Desert last October.

SpaceShipTwo mishap due to pilot error and company training oversight

July 28, 2015 William Harwood

The fatal in-flight breakup of Virgin Galactic’s futuristic SpaceShipTwo rocket plane during a test flight last October was the result of pilot error, possibly triggered by a high workload, unfamiliar vibration and rapid acceleration, the National Transportation Safety Board concluded Tuesday.

2014’s top stories in spaceflight

December 30, 2014 Spaceflight Now

The year ended with a deluge of big news, reminding us of the risks of spaceflight and the thin margins between success and failure on the final frontier. 2014 was also a year of breakthroughs in the exploration of the solar system and the future of human spaceflight.