DESERT NEWS STAFF REPORT

Rutan lauds employees for SpaceShipOne first flight

Reaching for the 'black sky'

BY BILL DEAVER

MOJAVE "It flies like a dream!" veteran Scaled Composites test pilot Mike Melvill said just after SpaceShipOne dropped from between the twin booms of the White Knight carrier aircraft to begin its first free flight last Thursday morning.

A little over an hour later, after the unpowered space ship touched down on runway 30 at Mojave Airport, a jubilant Burt Rutan congratulated the people of Scaled Composites.

"I want to thank everybody everybody! who's really put their hearts into it because the hearts are where it's really important I really appreciate it, guys," Rutan told the enthusiastic crowd of Scaled employees crowding around the tiny spacecraft.

All of them along with just about everyone else on Mojave Airport had spent the time between takeoff and landing with their heads back, necks and eyes straining, to catch glimpses of a Rutan-designed Beech Starship chase plane, White Knight, and then the tiny SpaceShipOne as it slowly and gracefully circled its way back to earth in a maneuver it will eventually duplicate as it returns from the first of several missions to space.

Melvill echoed Rutan's appreciation for his colleagues.

"I really appreciate everything everybody did," he said, his flight suit soaked from two traditional post-first-flight buckets of water.

"A lot of folks have really had some good hustle," Rutan added.

Doing it with professionalism

After thanking the Scaled crew, Rutan said "It's clear to everyone now that we've done it with the professionalism and the Scaled way and we've done it in the very best interests of safety - and with that, we're moving forward to see that "black sky" of space.

Noting the plane's mission, Rutan joked that the control tower operator should have asked Melvill if he wanted to return to space!

Touchdown

As soon as the spacecraft touched down on the runway, Rutan ran to it and stood, half-in and half-out of the small craft's round entry hatch, congratulating Melvill and asking questions as a video crew recorded the moment.

Designed and built by the talented Scaled team, SpaceShipOne is designed to be lifted by White Knight to 50,000 feet, near the altitude from which it descended last week, and launched into space propelled by rocket engines to above 100 kilometers into space and return to the runway it landed on last week.

If is succeeds, the event will mark the first flight into space by a non-governmental venture.

Liftoff

White Knight lifted off the Mojave Airport runway at 7 a.m., SpaceShipOne and Melvill tucked under a fuselage mimicking the spacecraft's sleek shape, rising into a spectacularly-clear and calm deep blue sky. As the carrier aircraft piloted by Brian Binnie and Cory Bird and its precious cargo rose steadily towards 47,000 feet for release, its route was traced by the white line of a contrail.

Flying at 105 knots, the space ship was launched about 10 nautical miles east of Mojave with a clean separation.

According to the Scaled test report, the flight was a success with all of the first flight's test cards executed as planned with all systems performing as designed and handling closely correlated with the simulator.

Landing was at 7:56 a.m. with the ship landing on two main landing gear and a nose skid.

Melvill reported that the release from the WhiteKnight "was great" and that the landing gear dropped as designed.

Preview of history

"When the spaceship goes to space, what we saw on the runway today will look identical it won't look any different at all which is kind of neat!" Rutan said, adding to laughter "it won't make a lot of noise around the airport."
 

SALUTE White Knight roars over SpaceShipOne on the runway at Mojave Airport after the spacecraft landed following release on its first free flight, last Thursday morning.

LANDING SpaceShipOne glides to a landing at Mojave Airport on its first free flight.

WELCOME A grateful Burt Rutan hugs Mike Melvill following Melvill's successful first flight of SpaceShipOne.

WATCHING Like just about everyone at Mojave Airport last Thursday, Randy Hamilton, Jim Balentine, Rick Adair, and David Bouldin kept their eyes on the sky.

AND THERE I WAS AT 47,000 FEET! - Following the successful first free flight of SpaceShipOne last Thursday, Pilot Mike Melvill, left, discusses the historic flight and landing with Scaled Composites founder Burt Rutan.

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