Virgin Galactic spacecraft crash kills one [View all]

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Last edited Fri Oct 31, 2014, 05:47 PM - Edit history (4)

Source: BBC

At least one person is dead and another injured after Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo space tourism craft crashed in the California desert.

The craft was flying a manned test when it experienced what the company described as "a serious anomaly".

It was undergoing its first powered test flight since January over the Mojave Desert, north of Los Angeles.

Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson tweeted he was flying to California "to be with the team". "Thoughts with all @virgingalactic & Scaled, thanks for all your messages of support," Sir Richard said.

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-29857182

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Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo Crashes During Flight Test

Virgin Galactic said its SpaceShipTwo rocket plane suffered a "serious anomaly" during a powered test flight on Friday that resulted in the loss of the aircraft.

The anomaly occurred after the plane was released from its WhiteKnightTwo carrier airplane and fired up its rocket engine in flight for the first time in more than nine months. Sources said SpaceShipTwo exploded in midflight, and debris fell onto California's Mojave Desert.

"The WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft landed safely," Virgin Galactic said in a statement. "Our first concern is the status of the pilots, which is unknown at this time."

Two pilots, equipped with parachutes, fly in SpaceShipTwo's cockpit during SpaceShipTwo's test flights, which originate from the Mojave Air and Space Port, about 95 miles (150 kilometers) north of Los Angeles. A source at the Kern County Sheriff's Department told NBC News that two parachutes were deployed after the anomaly.

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/virgin-voyage/virgin-galactics-spaceshiptwo-crashes-during-flight-test-n238376