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Briefing
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- First Rocket-Powered Test Flight – Aerospace company Virgin Galactic completed first rocket-powered test flight of SpaceShip Two VSS Unity spacecraft, designed to carry tourists and research payload, on April 5, 2018
- Flight Details – VMS Eve carrier plane released SpaceShip Two VSS Unity spacecraft at 46,500 feet (14,000 meters) above Sierra Nevada desert, where rocket motor then propelled Unity to Mach 1.87, almost twice speed of sound, on 30-second rocket burn, reaching 84,000 feet (25,000 meters) before landing
- Second Spacecraft Version – SpaceShip Two VSS Unity second version of spacecraft, after earlier version killed one pilot and injured another on October 31, 2014, due to human error
- Regulatory Approval – Received operator license in 2016 from U.S. Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation (FAA-CST) to fly SpaceShip Two VSS Unity for carrying tourist passengers once safety tests are complete
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Accelerator
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Sector
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Accommodation and Travel, Transportation and Logistics
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Organization
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U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, Virgin Galactic
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Source
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Hrala, J., "Virgin Galactic is finally licensed to take tourists into space",
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"VSS Unity first powered flight,"
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"Virgin Galactic tests rocket ship, three years after fatal accident,"
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Sheetz, M., "Virgin Galactic completes first rocket-powered, supersonic flight of its new spacecraft, Unity",
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Clark, S., "Virgin Galactic completes first rocket-powered test flight since 2014",
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AcceleratingBiz analysis
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Original Publication Date
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April 5, 2018
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