Sir Richard Branson unveils Virgin's spaceship

[Richard Pascoe]

Sir Richard Branson has unveiled the shuttle his company will use to send tourists into space and revealed that one of the first launchpads for flights will be in Scotland.
The White Knight Two has a 140ft wingspan and will act as the launch craft for a smaller spaceship carrying passengers for their journey into the earth's sub-orbit.
Displaying the ship in the Mojave Desert, outside Los Angeles, the Virgin Group entrepreneur said: "It's quiet something, isn't it? It's one of the most beautiful and extraordinary aviation vehicles ever developed."
The catamaran-type craft, which resembles two separate planes joined by a giant internal wing, is powered by four Pratt and Whitney engines and has been made by American space entrepreneur Burt Ratan's Space Composites company.
For the first time Sir Richard revealed that the company is in talks with local authorities, the British government and the Civil Aviation Authority to launch spaceflights from the UK.
Lossiemouth is one of a number of locations – including two in Sweden – where the spaceship will launch its two-hour flights from as early as 2010.
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

The complete article including short animated video and interview can be viewed at:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/2466198/...

[Lorenzo Starace]

Dear Richard, compliments for starting this extremely actual discussion, the suborbital programs will surely be more and more every year the core business of space tourism, more and more relatively cheaper, safe, the base for revenue of more and more involved companies building suborbital spacecrafts

kindest regards, Lorenzo Starace

[Richard Pascoe]

Hej Lorenzo

Let's just hope it all works out as Sir Richard Branson plans!

Richard

[Lorenzo Starace]

Dear Richard yes I hope and think all will go well, SCaled Composites and Virgin Galactic are ideal partners, all this very good to raise worldwide media attention on emerging private space tourism sector, spectacular, we are on the good way, great to have SICU SSG as referral agent Space Adventures leader space tourism company offering even the circumlunar future extreme experience!

thanks to our friend Tom for his hard work and kindest regards, Lorenzo