spacetoday.net: SpaceShipTwo performs first captive carry flight

SpaceShipTwo performs first captive carry flight

Posted: Tue, Mar 23, 2010, 8:06 AM ET (1206 GMT)
SpaceShipTwo takes off on first captive carry flight (VG)

SpaceShipTwo, the commercial suborbital vehicle under development for Virgin Galactic, left the ground for the first time on Monday attached to its carrier aircraft. SpaceShipTwo remained attached to the WhiteKnightTwo plane for its nearly three-hour flight from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California, going to an altitude of over 13,700 meters (45,000 feet). The flight is the first in a series of "captive carry" flights for SpaceShipTwo expected to last several months before progressing to glide tests, where SpaceShipTwo is released at altitude and glides back to earth. Powered test flights will begin by late this year, company officials previously stated, and extend through much of 2011.