Sir Richard Branson has come one step closer to realising his dream of offering space travel to tourists after a rocket created by his company Virgin Galactic completed its first solo glide flight.
SpaceShipTwo was carried by its mothership to an altitude of 45,000 feet – about 15,000 feet higher than normal passenger flights – and released over California’s Mojave Desert, according to the Press Association.
SpaceShipTwo, manned by two pilots, then flew freely for 11 minutes before landing safely at an airport.
This was the first time SpaceShipTwo has separated from its mothership and flown on its own, but it did not rocket into space.
Eventually it is hoped that the rocket will carry paying passengers into space for a short flight above the atmosphere. Already 370 customers are reported to have paid deposits for the flights, which will cost $200,000 each.
By Linsey McNeill
