The first passenger flights will take place later this year, but for now Virgin Galactic's
spacebound aircraft SpaceshipTwo is in the final phase of testing.
SpaceshipTwo conducted its third rocket-powered test flight on Friday. With Chief pilot David
Mackay and co-pilot Mark Stucky at the controls, the aircraft soared to an altitude of 71,000 feet.
Nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one
The pilots tested the spaceship's Reaction Control System -- or RCS -- and the newly
installed thermal protection coating on the vehicle's tail booms. According to the company,
all of the test objectives were successfully completed, and the 20-second rocket burn over
California's Mojave desert propelled the ship to 1.4 times faster than the speed of sound.
Virgin Galactic is the US offshoot of billionaire Richard Branson's London-based Virgin Group.
It's selling rides on SpaceShipTwo for $250,000 a piece. So far, more than 650 people have
put down deposits or paid for rides.