A privately built rocket plane has passed its initial flight tests, carrying a veteran test pilot up over 6,000 feet in under four minutes.
Retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Dick Rutan piloted XCOR's EZ-Rocket vehicle into the skies over Mojave, California. The plane reached a top speed of 184 mph (160 knots) in the 3-minute, 16-second flight before the liquid oxygen fuel was used up.
"I ignited one engine and the crew said everything looked good, so I lit the second engine and we started moving," said Lt. Col. Rutan. "The plane took off 1,200 feet down the runway and once airborne the vehicle rapidly accelerated to 160 knots. The rocket power provided positive, firm acceleration. Once we started running out of liquid oxygen I shut down both engines. Mike inspected the airplane visually and reported it was clean with no leaks. We entered a standard flame-out [landing] pattern and glided back to the runway."
XCOR president Jeff Greason said, "We passed a major milestone today. This is a significant technical achievement for a variety of reasons. First, once you get two engines working in combination it is significantly easier to cluster more engines for larger vehicles. Second, we were able to keep the engine and fuel flow running smoothly during the flight."
XCOR is in the process of developing their rocket engines in hopes of one day using them to reach orbit.
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