The Stratolaunch carrier plane rolled out of its hangar and in to public view at the Mojave Air and Space Port in California on Wednesday to undergo fueling tests.
Billionaire and co-founder of Microsoft, Paul Allen, has just unveiled the world’s biggest plane, possessing a wing span longer than an entire football field.
The giant plane is designed to launch rockets into orbit from an altitude of around 30,000 feet. It has a wingspan of 385 feet (117 m), a length of 238 feet (72 m) and a tail height of 50 feet (15 m).
According to Stratolaunch Systems Corporation, the plane uses six Boeing 747 engines built by Pratt & Whitney and has a maximum payload capacity of approximately 550,000 lbs.
Jean Floyd, Chief Executive Officer of Stratolaunch Systems, wrote in a statement Wednesday that the fuel testing “marks a historic step in our work to achieve Paul G. Allen’s vision of normalizing access to low Earth orbit.”
Credit: Stratolaunch Systems Corp.
Stratolaunch is based at the Mojave Air & Space Port, California
