HoodaThunk?

Scaled Composites’ latest creation, the WhiteKnightTwo, took to the air today for a 1 hour test flight. She performed beautifully.

A carrier aircraft designed to be the first stage of a commercial spaceline system made its maiden test flight today at the Mojave Air and Space Port in California.

Designed by Scaled Composites, the huge and unique WhiteKnightTwo mothership rolled down the runway and muscled itself into the air using four Pratt and Whitney PW308A turbofan engines. The WhiteKnightTwo flew for about an hour, departing the runway at roughly 8:17 a.m. Pacific Standard Time, safely touching down at the Mojave Air and Space Port at approximately 9:17 a.m. PST.

“It’s a big day,” said Stuart Witt, general manager of Mojave Air and Space Port. “I think it’s a real reflective time. When everybody’s looking for a bailout, there are still people that are doing something for a much larger reason,” he told SPACE.com.

After a number of shakeout flights, the WhiteKnightTwo is to be outfitted with the now-under-construction SpaceShipTwo. That rocket plane is also being built by Scaled Composites of Mojave, California. Ultimately WhiteKnightTwo is to carry the space plane to altitude, where it will then detach and head for suborbital space flights.

Excellent news! This is the continuation effort of Burt Rutan’s team that won the Ansari X-Prize 3 years ago when they became the first privately funded and run group to put a manned ship into orbit. That effort was the first step by Sir Richard Branson to build Virgin Galactic, the world’s first private spaceline. Branson and VG provided the incentive for Rutan to design and build a passenger-carrying version of his two-vehicle space launch system and, with today’s flight, the first stage of that system is now operational.

Bravo, folks! We’re looking forward to seeing more.