#stratolaunch

MOJAVE, CA – April 13, 2019 – Stratolaunch Systems Corporation, founded by Paul G. Allen, today successfully completed the first flight of the world’s largest all-composite aircraft, the Stratolaunch.

Just a few days after rolling out of its hangar for the very first time, Deimos-2 captured the Stratolaunch mothership aircraft on the tarmac at the Mojave Air and Spaceport June 2. The aircraft has the largest wingspan of any plane in the world at 384 feet - wider than the International Space Station. Stratolaunch will carry up to three Pegasus XL rockets in between its twin fuselages before deploying them mid-flight for launch. Stratolaunch Systems will begin ground tests of the vehicle in the coming weeks before aerial flights begin mid-2018.

Stratolaunch unveils world’s largest plane ahead of ground tests.

Following over six years of development, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen’s Stratolaunch aircraft was rolled out of its hangar at the Mojave Air and Space Port May 31. Stratolaunch has been in quiet development since Allen announced the project in 2011 under the name Stratolaunch Systems. The aircraft is designed to carry a rocket in between its twin fuselages for release in the upper atmosphere before rocketing to orbit. Initially, the aircraft was designed to launch a Falcon 9 block 1 rocket, but delayed development and an increase in the baseline Falcon 9 rocket has modified these plans. Now, Stratolaunch intends to launch up to three Orbital ATK-produced Pegasus XL rockets in one flight lofting small-class payloads into orbit. Pegasus most recently flew in December 2016 with NASA’s CYGNSS mission. Pegasus, attached to its Orbital ATK L-1011 Stargazer mothership, is currently the only air-launched rocket in the world.

A typical flight profile for Stratolaunch will see the mothership - with rockets attached - take off from the Mojave Air and Spaceport and head towards the Pacific ocean. Once over water and at launch altitude, the Pegasus XL rockets will be dropped from the aircraft, igniting their solid-fuelled engines moments later. Once all the rockets have been deployed and launched, Stratolaunch will return to Mojave for inspection and preparation for the next mission. The Stratolaunch mothership is the largest aircraft by wingspan in the world, measuring 384 feet from wingtip to wingtip - longer than an American football field and the International Space Station. 28 wheels move the aircraft on land while six air-breathing engines provide lifting power. A series of fueling tests will be performed on the ground to validate the aircraft’s ground support equipment before returning to its hangar for balance testing. The company hopes to perform its first demonstration launch in late 2019. A typical flight profile for Stratolaunch is seen below.