Plane with football-length width takes to the sky
<p>MOJAVE, California - Stratolaunch Systems Corporation, founded by Paul G. Allen, successfully completed the first flight of the world’s largest all-composite aircraft, the Stratolaunch on Saturday. </p><p>With a dual fuselage design and wingspan greater than the length of an American football field, the Stratolaunch aircraft took off at 06:58 am Pacific time from the Mojave Air Space Port.</p><p>Achieving a maximum speed of 189 miles per hour, the plane flew for 2.5 hours over the Mojave Desert at altitudes up to 17,000 feet. As part of the initial flight, the pilots evaluated aircraft performance and handling qualities before landing successfully back at the Mojave Air and Space Port.</p><p>"What a fantastic first flight," said Jean Floyd, CEO of Stratolaunch Saturday. "Today’s flight furthers our mission to provide a flexible alternative to ground launched systems. We are incredibly proud of the Stratolaunch team, today’s flight crew, our partners at Northrup Grumman’s Scaled Composites and the Mojave Air and Space Port."</p><p>The test team conducted standard aircraft testing exercises. Initial results from today’s test points include:</p><p>- Performed a variety of flight control maneuvers to calibrate speed and test flight control systems, including roll doublets, yawing maneuvers, pushovers and pull-ups, and steady heading side slips.</p><p>- Conducted simulated landing approach exercises at a max altitude of 15,000 feet mean sea level.</p><p>The Stratolaunch aircraft is a mobile launch platform that will enable airline-style access to space that is convenient, affordable and routine. The reinforced center wing can support multiple launch vehicles, weighing up to a total of 500,000 pounds.</p><p>"We all know Paul would have been proud to witness today’s historic achievement," said Jody Allen, Chair of Vulcan Inc. and Trustee of the Paul G. Allen Trust. "The aircraft is a remarkable engineering achievement and we congratulate everyone involved."</p>