US Media speaks of a crash of Virgin Galactic’s “SpaceShipTwo”.
The company announced that there was a “failure during the flight”, without giving any more details.
According to the Associated Press, who used the California Highway Authority as a source, the tolls is one person dead and another seriously injured.
The vessel, which Richard Branson’s “Virgin Galactic” was aiming to make the spearhead in its quest for becoming the first airline that will fly in orbit of the planet, had taken off for a test flight with its mothership, “WhiteKnightTwo”, which transports SpaceShipTwo to 50,000 feet before letting go.
The ship carries two pilots equipped with parachutes, and information states that said parachutes were seen over the Mohave desert.
A photographer covering the news for NBC network stated he witnessed an explosion in the air and shortly afterwards, SpaceShipTwo’s wreckage showering the desert below.
The purposes of these flight tests was to better prepare for flights over 100 km. Virgin Galactic had stated that the first flights could take place by the end of 2014, with 700 people having already paid up to 250,000 dollars to board the ship.
